Helium, a leader in decentralized wireless communications, today announced that the City of Redondo Beach is now powered by the Helium Network. 

The pier, which draws more than 1 million visitors annually, has had near-zero cellular coverage for years. High-rise condominiums between the waterfront and nearby carrier towers block signals before they reach sea level, leaving residents, concertgoers, and emergency responders without reliable service.

Talus Communications (Talus) solved this problem by enabling Helium on the city's existing Wi-Fi infrastructure and activating carrier offload, a feature major US carriers use when cell towers are congested or out of reach. This brought Helium coverage to the waterfront with no new hardware and no capital expenditure from the city. Now, more than 2,000 users per day are staying connected through the Helium Network at the city’s waterfront pier district, with that number increasing as summer foot traffic builds.

“The pier has been a connectivity blind spot for as long as I've been in this role; we knew it was a problem, but we couldn't justify the cost of fixing it the traditional way via a DAS or other means,” said Mike Cook, Redondo Beach IT Director. “Carrier offload through the Helium Network gave us a path we hadn't considered. No new infrastructure, no impact on our capital budget, and the coverage data we're seeing three months in has exceeded everything we projected. I am thrilled, and we have already expanded the service at the police department basement, and are considering future sites."

The Helium Network is built by individuals and businesses like Talus, who deploy Hotspots and update existing enterprise Wi-Fi systems in high-foot-traffic areas. With limited budgets, the ability to provide cellular service without the expense of complex DAS, or pLTE Neutral Host solutions and use existing infrastructure is a winner.  

“Access to reliable connectivity shouldn't depend on whether a carrier thinks your neighborhood, campus, or city is profitable enough to invest in,” said Mario Di Dio, CEO of Helium. “For years, the Redondo Beach pier was a dead zone, not because the technology to fix it didn't exist, but because the business case for traditional infrastructure didn’t pencil out. Helium changes that equation. What Talus delivered here is exactly the future we're building toward.” 

“We've deployed connectivity solutions across dozens of cities, but Redondo Beach stands out because the impact was immediate and visible," said Steve Rovarino, President at Talus Communications. “When you can walk onto a pier that's been a dead zone for years and watch your phone connect without touching a setting, that's the power of the Helium Network in action. We did this by working with what the city already had, without the need for additional or expensive spectrum licensing agreements. That's the model we want to bring everywhere.” 

Talus has successfully deployed several Helium-enabled networks for cities, colleges, universities, K-12 districts and expanding into medical centers.

Helium’s model is now growing internationally, most recently through a partnership with Mambo Wi-Fi that will serve as a foundation for network expansion across Brazil with more than 40,000 access points across the country. Currently, the Helium Network has nearly 140,000 Hotspots deployed in the United States, with more than 3 million daily users utilizing the people-powered network for affordable, reliable connectivity.

About Helium

Helium is on a mission to revolutionize connectivity by empowering people to help build a more open, secure, and affordable network. Through its global decentralized network, anyone can create wireless coverage for their community and earn rewards for participating. Together, we’re shaping a future where affordable connectivity and access to information are within reach for everyone, everywhere.

About Talus Communications

Talus is a wireless broadband service provider that supports the unique needs of clients, specializing in wireless broadband solutions including WIFI, Point-to-Point, Point-to-Multipoint and private LTE solutions. Talus can assist in the design, architecture and implementation of your unique network needs. Learn more at taluscommunications.com.