China unicorn* announces top 10 rankings in the Google Play store for Wi-Fi crowdsourcing app

Source: Play Store.

WiFi Master Key, a free Wi-Fi hotspot-crowdsourcing app, is seeing a surge in popularity in Southeast Asia as it helps a growing community get online in the region.

When a user shares a Wi-Fi hotspot with the community, other users can use the shared information in the database to get online for free. To protect privacy and security, the app does not reveal any shared Wi-Fi passwords; instead, it encrypts and stores the shared information in its cloud database.

Wifi.com, the Shanghai-based startup, which lets users easily and safely connect to free Wi-Fi hotspots shared by other users, was ranked 10th on Google Play's tools app chart in the Philippines for the week of October 19. In Indonesia, it is also ranked 10th, for tools apps.

The app became the No. 1 tools app in Malaysia last month, while also becoming the No. 5 most popular free app in the country. In Vietnam, it became on September 22 the No. 1 tool app, and the No. 5 free app in general.

Wifi.com founder and CEO Chen Danian said in a recent speech that WiFi Master Key has become an important tool for many on-demand services in China. He said: "WiFi Master Key will help more and more people get online for free, while providing better mobile services as we dig deep into our expanding data pool."

Launched in September 2012, Wifi.com set the record of being China's youngest unicorn mobile Internet company to achieve a billion-dollar valuation earlier this year, after closing a US$52 million Series A funding. As of August 2015, the app has connected a total of 700 million users, 360 million monthly active users, and an average of close to 30 million connections daily. WiFi Master Key set up regional headquarters in Singapore in May to tap into fast-growing markets in the region. 

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*A unicorn is a startup which is valued at more than US$1 billion. The figure is fairly rare, just like the legendary unicorn.

Inflight Internet on China Eastern Airlines and Skymark Airlines

Source: Panasonic Avionics.

China Eastern Airlines (CEA) and Skymark Airlines, Japan’s third largest airline, are both offering broadband-connected flights facilitated by Panasonic Avionics.

CEA's first aircraft equipped with inflight WiFi tailored to the unique requirements of China is an Airbus A330. The aircraft has been dedicated to routes between Shanghai and Beijing, allowing government agencies to observe operation of the service before granting full regulatory approval for operation on additional domestic and international routes.

Skymark Airlines is introducing the free-of-charge in-flight WiFi service on its fleet of new Airbus A330s for domestic flights. The same free WiFi experience is expected to be available on their international A380 fleet, initially on flights to North America.

Shinichi Nishikubo, President and Chief Executive Officer of Skymark Airlines said, “Our customers love in-flight WiFi, and today, we are taking a strategic step forward to ensure that our passengers can be both entertained and productive everywhere our aircraft fly.”

NTT offers traveller's SIM with 100MB a day for 14 days in Japan

Source: OCN website.

NTT Communications (NTT Com), the ICT solutions and international communications business within the NTT Group, has introduced a prepaid LTE data service, the OCN mobile ONE Prepaid SIM for Visitor. The service allows business travellers visiting Japan to enjoy up to 100MB of data per day for 14 days.

The package has a list price of JPY3,500 excluding tax, and offers maximum download speeds of 150 Mbps (uploads at 50 Mbps) nationwide. Speeds fall after the 100 MB limit every day to 200 Kbps till midnight of that day.

Source: NTT.

A website is available in English and Japanese, with Chinese supported from July. The manual is available in Chinese (traditional and simplified), English, Korean, Japanese and Thai, and a helpdesk supports Chinese, English, Korean and Japanese.

The SIM card can be purchased outside of Japan and picked up upon arrival in Japan at one of several airport post offices (Narita, Haneda, Kansai, Chubu Centrair, New-Chitose, Fukuoka, Kagoshima or Naha) or at selected hotels.

Those already in Japan can buy the prepaid SIM card from a vending machine at Narita Excel Hotel Tokyu or at an XCom Global counter at Narita, Haneda, Kansai or Chubu Centrair airports.

Sales in Hong Kong and Taiwan are planned in the coming months in partnership with Kadokawa. Additional purchase points, including vending machines, travel agents and hotels, are expected to be added.

As a further convenience, including access to unrestricted data, travellers are encouraged to download the app for the Japan Connected-free Wi-Fi service which is provided by NTT-BP, an NTT Group company. The service provides access to about 19,000 free Wi-Fi hotspots around Japan, including at major airports, stations and shops.