THE Launceston City Council at its meeting on Monday will consider the merits of investigating installing Wi-Fi technology in the Brisbane Street Mall.
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Alderman Tony Peck will move the motion to investigate Wi-Fi installation in the hope that it will attract more people into the city's central business district.
Several cafes in Launceston already offer free wireless internet to customers.
It is estimated that more than half the country's mobile phone users own a smartphone.
Wireless internet manufacturer Ruckus Wireless reported that there was a 22 per cent jump in the number of mobile internet subscribers and also a 32 per cent jump in Australians using a Wi-Fi hotspot.
Australian Communications and Media Authority research last year found 9.2 million Australians went online through their mobile phones and 4.4 million through a tablet over six months.
The Devonport, Central Coast, West Coast and Meander Valley councils have public Wi-Fi on offer to residents and visitors.
The Hobart City Council has internet access available at Salamanca Place where cost is recouped from local businesses advertising through the Wi-Fi network.
Alderman Rosemary Armitage will move a motion to urge Mayor Albert van Zetten to write to Premier Lara Giddings to request increased funding for the Queen Victoria Museum and Art Gallery.
The museum's two sites will cost $6 million to run this financial year, of which $1.3 million will be covered by the state government and $4 million by the council.
Deputy Mayor Jeremy Ball will move that the council looks at the possibility of holding a forum on the Upper Tamar estuary and Esk rivers to share information, discuss issues in the waterways and suggest solutions.