"Nationwide Free Wi-Fi" as Democratic Party's First Pledge... "Helpful in Daily Life" vs "Wasteful Tax Spending"

By 2022, 53,000 Free Public WiFi Spots Nationwide to Be Established
Consumers Say "Improvements Needed for Currently Operating Subway and Bus Services"

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Suwan] The Democratic Party of Korea announced on the 15th that as their number one pledge for the April 15 general election, they will establish 53,000 public free WiFi spots nationwide by 2022.

Among consumers, there are welcoming voices praising it as a good pledge, while concerns are raised about the current WiFi installed in subways and buses.

Lee Hae-chan, leader of the Democratic Party of Korea, attended the announcement of the 21st general election pledges held at the National Assembly on the 15th and watched the announcement by Policy Committee Chairman Jo Jung-sik. The Democratic Party promised the "beginning of the nationwide free Wi-Fi era" as its first pledge for the general election.
/Photo by Asia Economy DB

At the Democratic Party's general election pledge announcement ceremony on the same day, leader Lee Hae-chan stated, "The Democratic Party promises to expand safe public WiFi to every corner in this general election and open an era of nationwide free WiFi." Installing free WiFi in all public facilities was also a campaign pledge of President Moon Jae-in.

According to the pledge, from this year until 2022, a total of 53,000 public WiFi spots will be established in all public transportation and multi-use facilities where WiFi has not yet been installed, including city buses, village buses, elementary, middle, and high schools, all bus stops, terminals, railway stations, cultural, sports, tourism facilities, and health and welfare facilities nationwide.

The budget required this year is expected to be 48 billion KRW (government net budget). Through government-telecom operator matching, about 260 billion KRW will be invested in 2021, and about 270 billion KRW in 2022.

According to the Policy Committee, the budget for WiFi installation, operation, and maintenance will be shared equally (1:1) between telecom operators and the government-local governments, but the government’s share of the burden will gradually increase.

Free Wi-Fi / Photo by Yonhap News

Consumers who heard the news welcomed it by leaving comments on the Democratic Party’s official YouTube channel such as "This is a good policy. Now we can comfortably use the internet in public places," "A pledge that helps in real life," "It seems like a pledge the people want," and "A pledge that meets the demands of the times. I support it."

On the other hand, some pointed out, "I hope they fix the WiFi problems currently being piloted in subways and buses. The connection drops severely every time I use it," and "Shouldn't they focus on current problems rather than just increasing the number of WiFi spots?"

A 23-year-old university student, Mr. A, said, "At first, I thought it was good, but since the connection is poor, I don’t even try anymore," adding, "Speed is also a problem. It’s so slow that I just end up using my data." He added, "I hope this problem improves."

Another consumer said, "I often experienced disconnections while using public WiFi on my way to work," and criticized, "I don’t feel the need for this level of free WiFi. I hope they don’t waste taxes on unnecessary things."

Meanwhile, the public WiFi expansion pledge was proposed by President Moon during the 19th presidential election along with policies to reduce household communication costs, through the 'mandatory installation of public WiFi in all public facilities.' After the government was launched, the National Policy Planning Advisory Committee also decided to promote the establishment of public WiFi at a total of 200,000 locations including 50,000 buses and 150,000 schools.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.