On-Train Internet provider Icomera has registered its millionth Wi-Fi user on one of its customers' trains. And the popularity of the service is growing with more than 23,000 users per week in the UK and Sweden.
From a modest start in 2003 on the Linx trains in Scandinavia, Icomera has now passed the one-millionth user and, says the company, every week more than 23,000 passengers connect to Icomera's internet service on trains in Sweden and the UK.
"These numbers speak for themselves in terms of value that rail passengers place on high quality internet services", says Frederik Gustafsson, Icomera's CEO, "With more than 130 trains installed in Sweden and the UK, we continue to see a steady increase in the number of users and also the average session time, which tells us that many prefer the comfort of the train and the possibility to stay online for work or recreation, rather than lost time spent in planes and cars".
According to Jonathan Metcalfe, GNER CEO "The Wi-Fi service has shifted from being a novelty back in 2004, to being a commodity for travellers on our trains. GNER pioneered the introduction of Wi-Fi on Britain's railways and all our trains are now equipped with Wi-Fi. In fact we have more Wi-Fi enabled train carriages than any other train operator worldwide."
Icomera delivers turnkey client-server based solutions for Wi-Fi on trains that give not only passenger access, but also a platform for staff communication and fleet management applications. As train companies start realizing the many benefits of a central internet-based communications system, the demand for Icomera's products and services is expected to increase sharply in the next few years.
Icomera recently won its fifth rail industry award in four years for innovation and IT excellence. Earlier this month Icomera and GNER were awarded the "Innovation of the Year" award at the National Rail Awards 2007 for the development of real-time remote monitoring and business applications using the Icomera onboard system.