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Wi-Fi Requirements

Introduction

WhenThe youCrowdComms areplatform is lightweight in terms of data requirements. Once installed (mobile app) or open in browser (web based version) on user devices, the general rule is that if there is sufficient WiFi bandwidth to allow all users to concurrently use BBC News or comparable websites, this will be suitable to provide your audience a smooth experience when using the CrowdComms platform. 

A key consideration when arranging WiFi is that the WiFi for an event, yourspecific requirements will depend on what willyou beare happening during it. When it comeslooking to bandwidthdo thereat areyour noevent. requirementsTo set in stone forgive an app, butexample, if you have other services outside of CrowdComms using bandwidth, you will need to take this into consideration when arranging WiFi.

WiFi Requirements

If interactive features such as live polling are taking place, we recommend having a minimum of 15KB (upload bandwidth) per-attendee,user, so for 500 attendees, we would recommend having a minimum 7.5MB (500x15 = 7500KB = 7.5MB) upload speed. But,This this will beis based on each attendeeuser voting on a question at precisely the same time, which is incrediblywhilst unlikely to happen, soit's recommended to allow for the highest data usage scenario to ensure you are covered.  

As mentioned in the introduction, if you have other data hungry services taking place alongside the CrowdComms platform, it is essential to account for this when arranging WiFi. Ideally having these services on a bitdedicated lessWiFi wouldn’tconnection necessarilyif be a problem.possible.

ThingsUsers morealso likelyhave the ability to affectimpact the performance of WiFiWiFi. For example if your connected users (attendees etc) are attendees using the connectionWiFi into demandingstream ways, such as streaming video,videos, sending images or backing up their devices. The activity feed feature within our app platform allows photos to be uploaded, which can use significantly more data than live polling or a live Q&A. 

The mobile app itselfversion willof bethe CrowdComms platform is typically a 3-10 MB initial download,download (- when an attendee accesses the app for the very first time)time. butWe ifrecommend promoting to your users pre event reducing burden on WiFi of everyone trying to download on the app has been promoted to attendees prior to the event, a lot of attendees will already have the app downloaded on their device before the event starts. Then it will be a questionmorning of the appevent. generally working (browsingAccessing the agenda,web speakerbased profiles,version sendingis messagesmore to other attendeeslightweight and receivingdoesn't alerts etc) and for all of this, asrequire a general rule of thumb if you can get the BBC News website up and running smoothly on the venue WiFi, the app will work fine. download.

  • Ensure there are sufficient access points for all delegates to access the WiFi concurrently. Some delegates will be accessing the WiFi on more than one device e.g. phone and tablet
  • What is the delegate experience when logging onto the WiFi? BestThe recommended experience is a named SSID with password rather than logging in via browserbrowser. Request this from the venue. 
  • Ensure the WiFi DOESdoes NOT not disconnect after a certain amount of inactive time or attendees will have to keep signing in
  • There needs to be enough bandwidth for delegatesusers to comfortably browse the internet and send and receive emails. Some venues might restrict bandwidth to each device, in this case we recommend a minimum of 3Mb per device. In practise lower bandwidth can comfortably support the CrowdComms platform, 3Mb per device isensures requiredample data for all users to have a seamless experience. 
Session Engagement: Must Haves
  • HardwiredFor interactive live displays to show the results on digital displays around the venue for live polling, Q&A, and Game leaderboard, this requires a hardwired internet connection accessible from the AV desk (dedicated minimum of 3 Mb up and down).
    • In practise these results will update on WiFi however to ensure a smooth experience we highly recommend having hardwired internet connection ideally with dedicated data outside of the data allowance being used by users / attendees. 
  • AV setup will need to provide a smooth switch unit to transition seamlessly from the slide laptop to the CrowdComms show laptop or to a second laptop showing the live display results managed by your team or your AV team
  • Space at the AV desk for CrowdComms onsite resource or your resource managing polling / Q&A and space on the table for two (2) laptops
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