January 25, 2010

Sunflower Broadband to Enhance Wi-Fi

ARRIS today announced that Sunflower Broadband has selected the ARRIS Rapid Launch Hot Zone System to enhance its existing WiFi service capabilities.

The system is an ARRIS integration of wireless technology from BelAir Networks and a centralized enterprise management system from SolutionInc Ltd.

“(This) will enable us to help our commercial customers expand their marketing capabilities,” Karin Woodard, director of business development and IT for Sunflower Broadband said, in a statement. “These enhanced services will also create stickiness for our high speed data products, and produce new revenue from advertising and expanded service level offerings.”

The system provides centralized management that enables operators to manage and bill numerous commercial customers, who may have hundreds or thousands of end users.

It integrates with third party billing systems and can accommodate multiple pay-per-use options including credit cards, email accounts, and access codes. The system enables location-specific services, which can consist of one business, or a group of business locations under one account. Access points can be managed individually for billing, authentication, bandwidth, messaging, and marketing.

Tiered bandwidth service offerings give service providers the ability to charge premium rates for faster connections, and enhanced marketing features enable providers or their business customers to push specific marketing and advertising content on customized “welcome” and “registration” pages based on their locations.

According to Woodard, the company will begin integrating the SolutionInc management system with more than 60 BelAir Networks access point locations in Lawrence, KS and the surrounding communities of Basehor, Tonganoxie, Linwood, and Eudora. Deployments are expected to begin in March of 2010.