ALE-UCOPIA partnership unveils the hidden value of Wi-Fi networks
Paris, France - September 1, 2020 - Alcatel-Lucent Enterprise, a leading provider of communications, networking and cloud solutions tailored to customers’ industries, is proud to announce a new partnership with UCOPIA, a European leader in guest Wi-Fi access and Wi-Fi marketing management.
The partnership includes a "buy & resell" agreement that complements the captive portal solutions already offered by ALE and places UCOPIA at the top of the ladder in terms of solutions provided with the OmniAccess Stellar Express & Enterprise (UPAM) offer. This market-leading solution, which supports more than 50,000 users at a time on a single Wi-Fi network, is particularly attractive for customers that may have several large-scale sites. UCOPIA will benefit from ALE’s global reach and, as the world continues to digitise at an accelerated pace, a ubiquitous Wi-Fi service will be a source of increasing value for all stakeholders.
"The proliferation of mobile devices and the growing trend of 'BYOD' (Bring Your Own Device) are presenting network operators with increasingly complex challenges to effectively and securely manage guest Internet access and broadband usage via Wi-Fi connectivity," said Nicolas Duez, Head of Wireless and Service Platforms Business Unit at Alcatel-Lucent Enterprise. "UCOPIA's solutions are platforms with an optimal identity and access control policy that enable organisations to ensure compliance, improve infrastructure security and streamline operations, all without disrupting existing infrastructures and processes."
UCOPIA, or how to transform the Wi-Fi cost centre into a strategic asset
Founded in 2002, UCOPIA is the outcome of high-level research conducted at the world-renowned Pierre and Marie Curie University in Paris. The company empowers organisations to monetise their Wi-Fi network infrastructure. It connects visitors, guests and customers safely and securely to any Wi-Fi network. UCOPIA is thus helping to unlock the potential of Wi-Fi networks by enabling businesses, stadiums and cities to communicate with their users.
On 17 February 2020, UCOPIA joined forces with Weblib, a leader in digital solutions for retail, hospitality and public spaces. The new entity formed as a result of this merger strengthens their combined resources to improve the existing offer and develop new innovative solutions for a broader customer base. Weblib was eager to take advantage of UCOPIA's network of indirect sales partners, which has been optimised as a result of its new partner training program.
"Weblib already benefits from UCOPIA's expertise in other sectors such as universities, hospitals, head offices, hotels, stadiums and airports. The merger of our two companies is also an excellent opportunity for UCOPIA resellers who wish to accelerate their evolution towards innovative digital solutions and benefit from progressive partner training", stated Arthur Philbé, co-founder of Weblib and new CEO of the merged entity. "UCOPIA's reputation within the partner ecosystem is undeniable and the brand name will maintain its level of exposure," he continued.
UCOPIA Advance - the independent and flexible end-to-end Wi-Fi solution
The UCOPIA Advance product range offers a wide range of functions, all designed in a user-friendly manner. They isolate the local area network and resources of wireless access network organisations from customers and can also be used on site or in a private cloud architecture with local distribution. They include a redundancy and load-balancing mechanism that enables several thousand simultaneous secure connections to be made via various authentication mechanisms based on 802.1x (PEAP, TTLS, TLS) or HTTPS protocols.
"UCOPIA eliminates complexity via end-to-end design of the user experience and supports the digital transformation of customer environments. This is an independent Wi-Fi equipment solution capable of adapting flexibly to any possible changes in the network and hardware architecture", stated Sébastien Bloch, Sales Director at UCOPIA Group-Weblib. "The solution is fully compatible with Alcatel-Lucent Enterprise's OmniAccess Stellar WLAN portfolio and this new partnership will enable us to satisfy global markets that demand the highest quality solutions."