Municipal WiFis Continue to Fall, Private Sector Still Building
This may be a case of jumping before you look. Municipal WiFis that launched with some fan fare several months ago are running aground for economic reasons. San Francisco's plan stumbled last month and now Chicago is pulling the plug on its muni WiFi plans and Houston joins the list of cities with problematic network plans.
San Francisco's plan was to be a step to close the digital divide:
This agreement catapults San Francisco into a leadership position in wireless technology: the network ensures universal, affordable wireless broadband access for all San Franciscans, especially low-income and disadvantaged residents; and through the Mayor's digital divide program, children and students will have the digital tools to ensure that they have access to everything that the Internet has to offer the growing minds of the City's promising future," said Donald Berryman, executive vice president of EarthLink and president of the ISP's municipal networks unit.
Chicago is having second thoughts about municpal WiFi as well according to CNN:
The plan to blanket Chicago's 228 square miles with wireless Internet access was announced early last year when Chicago leaders said they hoped to become one of the largest cities to offer all-over access to the Web.Instead, the city said its negotiations with private-sector partners, including EarthLink Inc., have stalled because any citywide Wi-Fi would require massive public financing. The city had hoped to provide only infrastructure for the network.
Houston is also having it's problems with EarthLink:
EarthLink's faulty business plan cost the company a $5 million penalty after failing to come up with a wireless network for the city of Houston. EarthLink now has until June next year to either start building the network or find a way to sneak out of the contract with Houston.
But, not surprisingly, the private sector is still targeting the more profitable pay-for-service market with WiMax services:
Meanwhile, Chicago will be among the first three cities nationwide to have access to a new high-speed wireless network that's part of an emerging technology called WiMax.Sprint Nextel Corp. announced plans this spring to offer wireless Internet speeds that match DSL and cable TV modems.
Municipal wireless Internet access isn't a bad idea, we just need to get the architecture and business model right.
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