Google Hints at Wi-Fi Offering

Google Inc. may be close to launching a Wi-Fi service.

A page on the Google Web site instructs customers on how to download Google Secure Access, a client that the site says “allows you to establish a more secure connection while using Google WiFi.”

A Google spokeswoman could not comment further on the company’s Wi-Fi plans or strategy.

In April, Google began sponsoring a free hotspot in San Francisco’s Union Square.

In August, Business 2.0 magazine published a report on rumors that Google had begun buying access to fiber across the U.S. Industry observers have since speculated that Google may be on the verge of offering some sort of access service, potentially using Wi-Fi.

The Google Web page says that the Secure Access program can be downloaded at certain Google Wi-Fi locations in the San Francisco Bay area. However, the client can in fact be downloaded to any computer that is connected to the Internet.

The page also says that while Google Secure Access should work at any Wi-Fi location, Google hasn’t tested it elsewhere.

By Nancy Gohring, IDG News Service