Google tests a WiFi link

Technology - International Herald Tribune: "The Internet search leader Google is preparing to release its own wireless Internet service, Google WiFi, according to several pages found on the company's Web site on Tuesday.

The Google site refers to a product called "Google Secure Access," which is designed to "establish a more secure connection while using Google WiFi," according to a page of frequently asked questions, http://wifi.google.com/faq.html. A separate page, http://wifi.google.com/download.html, offers a free download of Google Secure Access.

Google declined to comment.

The start of a WiFi service would move Google away from its core Internet search service and into the competitive world of Internet service providers and telecommunications giants.

Speculation about a coming Google WiFi service has been rife since August, when an article appeared in Business 2.0 magazine, but the company has refused to discussed its plans.

WiFi is an increasingly popular technology that is used to provide high-speed wireless Internet access in homes, business and public spaces like airports and coffee shops. Google opened a sponsored WiFi "hotspot" in San Francisco's Union Square district in April with a start-up called Feeva.

The FAQ page says the Google Secure Access service is in the "beta" stage, meaning the company does not consider it a fully finished product.

Google, which is rapidly expanding beyond its core Internet search service, introduced an instant messaging and telephony service called Google Talk in August."