THERE WAS A certain serendipity for Irish wifi specialist Bitbuzz in Dublin City Council’s decision to seek tenders for a free public internet services at various points around the city.

Bitbuzz founder Shane Deasy told me this week that it was already working with retailers on plans to offer such a service on Grafton Street and Henry Street, the busiest shopping streets in the capital, and throughout Temple Bar.

It also has similar plans for Cork and Galway.

“We were already planning to do something ourselves anyway,” Deasy says. “We will be responding to the tender but in conjunction with that, we are looking at doing something ourselves.”

This week, we revealed that BSkyB subsidiary the Cloud is interested in the council tender, while Eircom and BT Openzone might also be in the mix.

Win or lose, Deasy will press ahead with his own plans regardless.

Is there room for two providers of wifi on the likes of Henry Street? “I don’t see why not,” Deasy says.

Bitbuzz increased its revenues by 27 per cent last year to €1.4 million. Deasy says it’s ahead again this year by “at least 15 per cent”.

The company, which has more than half the public wifi market here, doesn’t disclose profitability.

He also has not given up hope of acquiring Eircom’s wifi hub business, which has about 700 hotspots here.

Deasy was recently rebuffed by the debt-laden incumbent following a cheeky approach.

Undeterred, he now plans to write to Eircom’s interim examiner Michael McAteer to reaffirm his interest.