Over the past years, the Malta Communications Authority (MCA) has successfully installed more than 400 free Wi-Fi connections around Malta and Gozo. The MCA free Wi-Fi provides citizens and tourists with the flexibility to access the Internet over mobile devices in public spaces, such as public gardens, village squares, local councils, schools and government departments.
Coordinated by the MCA in collaboration with other public entities, this initiative essentially facilitates access to the Internet through a secure broadband connection and promotes the use of connected devices.
Accessing a public Wi-Fi hotspot is very easy: when one connects to the MCAfreeWiFi signal, a splash page is displayed on his/her mobile device. This page includes the terms and conditions for the usage of the Wi-Fi spot. Once these terms and conditions are accepted and the user enters his/her age, gender and nationality, he/she are connected to a wireless Internet broadband connection of up to 35Mps downstream. The connection is filtered against adult content, gambling and gambling sites, through a centralised technology.
An average of 7,500 users access the Internet through these free Wi-Fi hotspots on a daily basis. Since 2015, close to eight million users used the MCA free Wi-Fi access points. Users who consume the service vary, with the majority being tourists, students and those who want to be online while relaxing in these open locations.