Fast food chain McDonald's hopes that in-store technology will attract new customers and boost business.

The company is installing BT Openzone WiFi hotspots in 561 restaurants across the country, all but 11 in its 'drive-thru' outlets, in an effort to capture a share of the market for business users.

McDonald's hopes to entice remote or travelling workers into its restaurants to use the wireless broadband service while they eat.

'This is really about helping the corporate user and giving them another reason to go to McDonald's,' said head of management systems Steve Tiley.

'Technology is a very big deal. Anything that makes people's lives easier without adding that complexity is key to us.'

The hotspots will be located at McDonald's restaurants, but will still be owned by BT, and the usual Openzone charges will apply. A new pay-as-you-go Openzone service costing 20 pence a minute was announced last week.

McDonald's hopes wireless internet access will be popular with its customers and will filter down to more High Street restaurants in the next two years.

The fast food giant is also experimenting with other forms of technology. Tiley says there are several initiatives underway based around mobile and internet systems to attract new custom.

'We are trying to make our restaurants more appealing and attract new customers,' he said.

'We are also looking at fixed internet terminals, like an internet caf‚, and other areas such as touch screen TV, aimed at the youth market.'

Touch screen TVs will be piloted in 10 restaurants during the first quarter of the year.

McDonald's in the UK is keeping a close eye on the US where wireless trials at 400 restaurants in four cities attracted new, mainly older users, 60 per cent of whom said they wouldn't have visited if it wasn't for the wireless access.

McDonald's is also equipping staff at its 1,250 UK restaurants with handheld devices to take food orders on the restaurant floor to cut queues (Computing 17 July).