A group of outback Queensland councils have launched a giant free wi-fi network for travellers.

Seven central west councils are coming together to form the Outback Telegraph, which has already begun offering free internet in Winton.

“People want to be able to get online, find restaurants, find their way around and use maps. That's where things started,” said Winton Shire Council's Charles Dyer, one of the originators of the plan.

Winton shire council's IT manager, Nick McGrath said it would be particularly valuable during outages that often last a couple of days.

Free wi-fi will soon be available in other outback towns, starting with Longreach, Barcaldine and Windorah in the central west.

The free wi-fi network does collect some data about the people logging into the service.

Mr Dyer said the data collection was valuable, as it would let local businesses tailor their services to visitors.

“You might collect some Facebook data to learn what people like,” he said.

“And then when you want to advertise with Facebook you can tell Facebook, I want you to specifically target people who like thriller movies.

“That's one benefit of the data, you can then use it to make your other money on advertising go further.”

Mr McGrath said tourists’ devices would automatically connect as they moved between towns.

“That gives visitors more time to check out the experiences the outback had to offer.”