Co-op Live Achieves Friendly WiFi Certification – Reinforcing Commitment to A Safe and Secure Visitor Experience

Manchester, UK: Co-op Live, the UK's premier live entertainment venue and largest indoor arena, has achieved Friendly WiFi certification, further strengthening its commitment to delivering a safe, secure and family-friendly experience for every visitor.

Operated by Oak View Group (OVG), the global leader in live entertainment venue development and management, Co-op Live continues to set new standards across their visitor experience – from industry-leading sustainability and accessibility to world-class digital infrastructure.

As millions of fans pass through the venue each year, Co-op Live recognises that creating an exceptional guest experience extends beyond the arena bowl. Alongside physical safety and customer service, the venue is committed to ensuring its public WiFi network provides a secure online environment for all users, including families and younger visitors.

Friendly WiFi is the UK's only independent public WiFi safety standard, designed to ensure that appropriate filtering is in place to block harmful content, including pornography and child sexual abuse material. The certification provides visible reassurance that public WiFi meets recognised safeguarding expectations.

Achieving the certification reflects Co-op Live's ongoing investment in responsible venue operations, ensuring public connectivity is not only fast and accessible, but independently verified as meeting recognised digital safeguarding standards.

Bev Smith, Director at Friendly WiFi, said:

“Co-op Live is setting the standard not just for live entertainment, but for the overall visitor experience – and that includes digital safety. Public WiFi is something people use without thinking, yet the protections behind it are rarely visible. By achieving the Friendly WiFi Approved Standard, Co-op Live is turning that invisible protection into visible reassurance for every visitor who walks through its doors. At this scale, and with such a diverse audience, this level of commitment really matters.”

Guy Dunstan, Senior Vice President and General Manager at Co-op Live, said:

“At Co-op Live, we're committed to delivering an exceptional experience for every visitor, with safety and wellbeing at the heart of everything we do. Achieving Friendly WiFi certification is another important step in ensuring our venue offers a secure and trusted environment, giving guests confidence that our public WiFi meets the highest standards of digital safety. As we continue to raise the bar for live entertainment, we're proud to invest in every aspect of the visitor experience, both on and offline.”

The Friendly WiFi certification will be displayed across the venue's network and digital touchpoints, providing visitors with clear reassurance that Co-op Live's public WiFi has been independently assessed and verified.

The accreditation further reinforces Co-op Live's position as one of the UK's leading live entertainment venues, demonstrating that innovation and visitor wellbeing extend beyond the live event itself. As expectations around digital safety continue to grow, the venue hopes to encourage wider adoption of recognised standards across the entertainment and events industry.

ENDS

For more information, contact:

Ben Tipple, Communications Director, Co-op Live - btipple@cooplive.com

Kezia Tirayoh, We Are Indigo - kezia@weareindigopr.com

About Co-op Live:

Co-op Live is the UK’s newest premier venue located on the Etihad Campus in the heart of Manchester. The 23,500-capacity arena features over 120 nights a year of unique entertainment, emerging as the largest arena in the UK, a testament to the unrivalled partnership between Oak View Group (OVG), City Football Group (CFG), Harry Styles, and Co-op. Distinguished as a world-class, planet-friendly venue deeply rooted in the local community, Co-op Live is one of the world’s most sustainable and socially responsible venues delivering on Co-op’s vision of a fairer world within the entertainment industry. With an impressive array of food and drink concessions, including bars, premium restaurants, lounges, and club spaces, Co-op Live sets the standard for live entertainment in the music industry today. Venue excellence extends to the innovative ‘Smart Bowl’ design with cutting edge technology and state-of-the-art acoustics, crafted to offer an intimate and immersive sensory experience for all patrons. Visit cooplive.com, and follow on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, X and TikTok.

About Oak View Group:

Oak View Group (OVG) is the global leader in premium live entertainment infrastructure and services, with a platform spanning venue development and end-to-end capabilities across venue management, hospitality, and sponsorship sales. Founded in 2015, the company serves a collection of seven world-class owned venues and a client roster of the most iconic arenas, stadiums, convention centers, music festivals, performing arts centers, and cultural institutions, spanning four continents.

About Friendly WiFi:

Friendly WiFi is the UK’s only independent public WiFi safety standard, providing assurance that appropriate filtering is in place to block harmful content, including pornography and child sexual abuse material.

Originally developed in collaboration with government and industry, Friendly WiFi supports organisations in demonstrating visible, independent verification of their public WiFi networks — aligning with safeguarding responsibilities, governance expectations, and the requirements of the Online Safety Act.

The standard is not a filtering provider. Instead, it independently assesses and verifies that filtering is effective, providing organisations with a recognised trust mark that signals a commitment to protecting users, including families, young people, and vulnerable audiences.

Friendly WiFi works across a wide range of sectors including transport, retail, healthcare, education, and public spaces — helping organisations turn an invisible protection into visible reassurance.