Intel Plugs Wi-Fi with 'One Wireless Day'

Intel Corp. spearheads a one-day (estimated) $3 million promotional blitz that gives free wireless Internet access at thousands of restaurants, airports and hotels nationally. The Sept. 25 event, dubbed One Wireless Day, includes concerts in New York, San Francisco and Chicago, special events in Seattle, and prize giveaways in the four cities as well as Portland and Denver International Airport.

One Wired Day Festivals center on performances by musicians including Michael Bublé; demos of wireless fidelity (Wi-Fi, for short) and sampling of Intel's new Centrino wireless technology for notebook PCs.

"Roving mobility teams" in the five cities and Denver airport will give instant prizes to consumers using public Wi-Fi. Promo partners include PC marketers IBM, Panasonic, PC Club and Toshiba in addition to Wi-Fi service providers T-Mobile, SurfHere (Toshiba), Verizon, Boingo and Cometa. GMR Marketing, New Berlin, WI, handles. Euro RSCG, New York City, provides ad support.

Santa Clara, CA-based Intel hosted a similar one-day concert, mobile marketing and sampling event in New York City last year to showcase its Mobile Pentium 4 processor. GMR Marketing also handled that blitz, which won a PRO Award (November 2002 PROMO).