Manchester, LANCS, May 15, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Purple, the leading global guest WiFi and analytics platform, today announced the appointment of Iain Fox as VP Growth – Public Sector. In this newly created role, Fox will spearhead Purple’s expansion across local government and the wider public sector, helping authorities transform public Wi-Fi into a strategic asset for community intelligence and digital inclusion.
Iain Fox joins Purple’s team to help spearhead digital inclusion
Fox brings extensive commercial leadership experience gained across technology-driven businesses and high-growth start-ups. A recognized advocate for leveraging digital infrastructure to improve everyday lives, he has spent over a decade working closely with local authorities and public sector organizations to bridge the digital divide.
At Purple, Fox will lead the mission to help councils and public bodies move beyond viewing WiFi as a mere utility. Instead, his focus will be on helping these organizations unlock the data intelligence within their networks to drive smarter decision-making, boost local economic growth, and deliver more inclusive services.
“Public WiFi has enormous untapped potential. For too many councils it sits as a cost line on a balance sheet, when it should be one of the most powerful tools they have for understanding their communities, driving footfall, and closing the digital divide,” said Iain Fox, VP Growth – Public Sector at Purple. “I’m thrilled to be joining Purple, where the technology already exists to make that shift happen. My focus will be on helping the public sector see WiFi not just as connectivity, but as intelligence.”
The appointment comes at a time of significant momentum for Purple, following its partnership with Newcastle City Council to deliver a unified, city-wide WiFi network and the rollout of the Purple App, which provides seamless, secure connectivity for residents and visitors. By utilizing the Purple App, users connect once and roam freely across thousands of hotspots without repeated logins, removing the friction associated with traditional public WiFi and directly addressing digital poverty.
To book a call with Iain, please click here.
About Purple
Purple is the leading global connectivity platform that has built the world’s largest public WiFi network. Their mission is to make WiFi a secure, seamless, and ever-present utility for everyone, everywhere. A global force with a presence in 89 countries, the platform is a powerful network that serves nearly 500 million users across 80,000 venues, with automatic, secure access to over 5 million hotspots through the Purple app.
Press Inquiries
The Purple Press Team
press [at] purple.ai
https://www.purple.ai
