Toronto Public Library, Mayor Tory and Google Canada Announce Wi-Fi Hotspot Lending Program

TORONTO, June 15, 2016 /CNW/ - Mayor John Tory, Toronto Public Library (TPL) and Google Canada today announced an innovative wi-fi hotspot lending library program that will give Torontonians free Internet at home. The pilot program has started in six TPL branches: Albion, Cedarbrae, Evelyn Gregory, Parliament Street, Thorncliffe and York Woods, and was made possible by a donation from Google.org and funds from the City of Toronto through the 2016 operating budget.

TPL has identified a total of 210 pilot participants. All participating branches are located in neighbourhood improvement areas, serving large numbers of low income households with a higher likelihood of not have Internet access at home.

"We need programs like this one to help close the digital divide. People who can't afford broadband Internet at home are at a significant disadvantage when it comes to school, looking for jobs or accessing government services and education," said Vickery Bowles, City Librarian. "Internet access is essential in our digital world. We're proud to pilot this program and hopeful we can increase its reach in the future."

All participants are asked attend an orientation session to learn about the hotspots, and also to learn how to access TPL eLearning resources and other useful library resources including ebooks, digital magazines and more.

"We are choosing to invest in people by providing Internet access to neighbourhoods which need it most. The program will give our vulnerable residents the opportunity to look for jobs, do homework or use City services," said Mayor John Tory. "This program, along with several other measures in the Poverty Reduction Strategy from the 2016 budget, will make a difference in people's lives, provide hope and opportunity, and make our city a fairer more inclusive place to live."

Pilot participants can borrow the hotspots for up to six months at a time, and can use 10GB of data per month. This differs from the wi-fi hotspot lending that other library systems offer – notably, Edmonton Public Library, Kitchener Public Library, Chicago Public Library, New York Public Library, and Seattle Public Library – in that those libraries have access to unlimited data plans for borrowers. TPL continues to investigate if vendors are willing to provide more flexible data services as this is critical to the program's long-term success.

"Lending WiFi hotspots to households who don't have access to the Internet is a simple, effective way to help those who need broadband and technology the most. Through this project Google hopes to give some of the most underserved in our city a way to bridge the tech divide," said Sam Sebastian, Managing Director, Google Canada.

The wi-fi hotspot lending pilot program will be evaluated after one year and recommendations will be made about the future of the program at that time.

Toronto Public Library

Toronto Public Library is one of the world's busiest urban public library systems. Every year, almost 19 million people visit our branches in neighbourhoods across the city and borrow more than 32 million items. To learn more about Toronto Public Library, visit tpl.ca or call Answerline at 416-393-7131. To get the most current updates on what's happening at the library, follow us on Twitter @torontolibrary.

City of Toronto

Toronto is Canada's largest city, the fourth largest in North America, and home to a diverse population of about 2.8 million people. It is a global centre for business, finance, arts and culture and is consistently ranked one of the world's most livable cities. For information on non-emergency City services and programs, Toronto residents, businesses and visitors can visit toronto.ca, call 311, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, or follow us @TorontoComms. 

Google Canada

Google's mission is to organize the world's information and make it universally accessible and useful.  As a global technology leader, Google's innovations in web search and advertising have made its website a top internet property and its brand one of the most recognized in the world. With over 800 Googlers across four offices in Waterloo, Toronto, Montreal, and Ottawa, Google Canada's engineers work on products used by millions of people worldwide everyday including Chrome & Chrome OS, Gmail, Google's mobile apps and Google's Ads and commerce infrastructure. Google Canada's sales teams work across every industry in Canada with businesses of all sizes to grow their business online and make the most of the web.

SOURCE Toronto Public Library

Media Contact: Toronto Public Library, Ana-Maria Critchley or Michelle Leung, [email protected], 416-393-7212; City of Toronto, Keerthana Kamalavasan, 647.460.7507, [email protected]; Google Canada, Aaron Brindle, [email protected], 647-436-5167