As an online city, Melbourne will have universal and dynamic online culture connecting its people to each other and to the world. A high percentage of people will access the internet via their choice of high-speed broadband providers and all will have access to the municipality's universal wireless internet connection.
Future Melbourne 2008

Overview

A large number of people stated that provision of free Wi-Fi was their priority. Support for more online access was clear from the many statements which referenced city-wide Wi-Fi as important for a connected Melbourne in the future.

Summary of ideas (total 32 statements)

Online city (32 statements)

A large number of people gave feedback about Melbourne being an online city. Several people used words like ‘connection’, ‘linked’, and ‘connectivity’ to describe their vision of future Melbourne.

Free and functioning Wi-Fi access across the city was identified consistently by many people as an important part of urban living. Conversations showed that several people saw strong benefits to the city in terms of tourism, international reputation, facilitating informal interactions (online and offline) and access to learning in public spaces. A couple of people made the point that this was an overdue initiative, and one made the point that having an online city would help Melbourne to keep pace with the rest of the world.

These connections, whether through wifi or other emerging technologies, should be freely accessible and able to be navigated by people of all ages, abilities and socio-economic backgrounds.

This statement was about improving online access.

Melbourne talks about being a digital city however there is nothing to help people connect to engage. Let's make this happen!

A couple of people questioned how effective it would be to have free Wi-Fi (one favoured personal connections over digital and the other questioned how connectivity would lead to innovation).