McDonald's Corp. , under an agreement with Intel Corp. , said it will provide high-speed wireless Internet access in 10 of its Manhattan restaurants.
Financial terms of the deal, which confirmed a report in Tuesday's Wall Street Journal, weren't disclosed. McDonald's and Intel said the agreement coincides with the launch of the Intel Centrino mobile technology for notebook PCs that feature built-in wireless capability. Centrino is a bundle of three chips that bring computing power, longer battery life and wireless connections to portable computers. The co-marketing agreement between the Oak Brook, Ill.-based fast-food chain and the Santa Clara, Calif.-based chip maker will include advertising, in-store merchandising and a signage program that identifies where Intel-verified wireless Internet zones are located. For the next three months, McDonald's said New York City customers with wireless-enabled laptops who purchase an Extra Value Meal at participating restaurants will receive one hour of free high-speed wireless Internet access. Customers also can purchase a single session of up to 60 minutes for $3. McDonald's is offering an open network for all wireless users, so customers don't have to set up an account. McDonald's said it is scheduled to expand the high-speed wireless access to hundreds of restaurants in New York City, Chicago and a major market in California by the end of the year. Intel plans to spend more than $300 million to build the Centrino brand, including a flood of television ads based on the theme "unwire," the Journal reported. Separately, Intel and Borders Group Inc. (NYSE:BGP - News) announced an agreement to jointly promote wireless connections, or hotspots, in 400 Borders stores in the U.S. The terms of that agreement weren't disclosed. --- < This Email is certified to be Virus Free > Checked by AVG anti-virus system (http://www.grisoft.com). Version: 6.0.461 / Virus Database: 260 - Release Date: 3/10/2003 -- NYCwireless - http://www.nycwireless.net/ Un/Subscribe: http://lists.nycwireless.net/mailman/listinfo/nycwireless/ Archives: http://lists.nycwireless.net/pipermail/nycwireless/
