Newark, New Jersey has launched a new project that will deploy ultra-fast wifi kiosks throughout the city. The project is called Brand Newark and is one of the first smart city initiatives in Newark. The program is sponsored by the Newark Downtown District and has been created by Aptinet Inc. The kiosks were launched with a media event earlier this week.
Much of the work involved in creating a smart city will be behind the scenes as it focuses on creating significantly enhanced Wi-Fi bandwidth that is easily accessible in Newark. But there is one highly visible element, which will form the first project that will be opening this fall at Prudential Way and Broad Street, at Military Park.
Funded by the Newark Downtown District, and supported by the city, an Internet kiosk (named Brand Newark) will open on the site. It will be a powerful Wi-Fi hub that will provide residents and visitors with the latest news and information on local businesses, traffic, mass transit schedules, local news, videos and other important features via a next generation fiber optic network.
City officials say they’ve taken lessons from New York City, which had to roll back some of the functionality of its citywide wifi kiosks following less than ideal uses. Newark will be moving carefully as it deploys its open internet access platform to ensure appropriate uses. Additional kiosks will be rolled out throughout downtown Newark later on.
“This is a big step forward for the City, to make us an innovative hub where tech companies will want to locate. Brand Newark is a physical extension of that, and a way that the neighborhoods can feel like this innovation is all around them and they are a part of it. We want to make it happen right here, a smart city, gigabit internet, and a tech-savvy workforce,” said Mayor Baraka.
Newark is partnering with a number of companies for its smart city development. Those partners include –
Panasonic
IBM Corp
Juniper Networks
Lutron Electronics
Arkados Group
4.0 Analytics
Numina
GoMo Health
Aptinet Inc.
Beyond the kiosks, the city will be working with its technology partners to develop additional attractions for high-tech industries.
The city has put together this brief video about Brand Newark:
