HONG KONG, Oct. 12 (Xinhua) -- Hong Kong has installed more than 5,000 Wi-Fi hotspots at around 3,000 locations in the territory, according to the latest statistics published Friday by the Office of the Telecommunications Authority (OFTA) of Hong Kong.

The number made Hong Kong a world leader in the provision of public Wi-Fi service, said a spokesman for the OFTA.

Unlike other cities, where public Wi-Fi service involves either public funding or co-ordination by governments, Hong Kong's service is entirely funded by the commercial sector.

"This testifies again the success of our market-driven policy. We look forward to this as one of many initiatives to be taken forward by the commercial operators to further drive the development of Hong Kong as a wireless city," the spokesman said.

He said that the OFTA will continue to remove regulatory barriers and to facilitate the deployment of wireless communications services, including public Wi-Fi service, to develop Hong Kong into an advanced wireless city.