Soon, it may be impossible to avoid mobile phones, even underground.
A 1.2 billion pound (US$1.95 billion) project by the London Underground will create a mobile phone link between drivers, station staff, rapair workers, and emergency workers throughout the 400 kilometer subway system.
Any spare capacity on the network might be used to provide mobile phone coverage at stations and to project moving advertisements onto station walls, the Underground's managing director said Tuesday.
Derek Smith added that if passengers respond favorably, the Underground might consider providing them with mobile coverage in the tunnels.
The project, known as Connect, was signed between the Underground and CityLink Communications, a consortium representing Motorola, Racal Electronics, and Fluor International.
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In their debt: America Online will join Intuit, a leading online consumer financial services company, in offering a new service for paying household bills online.
The 5-year deal will create a bill management service that will let customers receive, track, and pay both electronic and traditional paper bills. Intuit will provide the technology to AOL's site.
The service is expected to be in place by early 2000, the companies said.
Reuters contributed to this report.
