Good article in the LA Daily News on the subject today: L.A. left hanging on Metro plans on Wi-Fi
http://www.dailynews.com/breakingnews/ci_9078360
Excerpt: Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa's call last year to blanket Los Angeles with Wi-Fi access was dropped like a bad cell phone connection after EarthLink backed out of an agreement.
The struggling service company had planned to install the network at no cost to the city with radio transmitters on street lamps and other properties, hoping to make money by offering subscriptions to the service.
But company officials later decided the business model didn't work. Similar Wi-Fi arrangements by Earthlink around the country have also been unplugged. Late last year, the provider announced plans to lay off 900 employees.
Other cities around the country also saw well-intended Wi-Fi plans sink because they wanted wireless companies to install the technology for free but then would not commit their city departments - such as fire, police and utilities - to using the system.
Because of that, many wireless businesses were not guaranteed the service would be used - which forced many to cancel the deals, said Don Lanham, president of 4G Metro, a Texas-based wireless broadband network integrator that brings Wi-Fi to cities and public transportation.
"To put it out there for free? That's nuts. That's like asking IBM to supply a free computer to everyone in the country," Lanham said. "We're for-profit. We're not nonprofit."
Still, Villaraigosa remains interested in providing Wi-Fi service in the city, and a feasibility report on financing options is expected to be considered within a month, Villaraigosa spokesman Matt Szabo said.
"The mayor is still absolutely committed to bringing Wi-Fi to Los Angeles," Szabo said.
We shall see.
Monday, April 28, 2008
The future of Wi-Fi up in the air ...
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3 comments:
The geographic size of our city limits the ability to blanket it with Wi-Fi service. Why not focus on "hot spots", around civic buildings like in downtown, Van Nuys, West LA and San Pedro. As well as locations like our libraries, recreation centers and other City facilities that citizens gather.
The mayor and his lackeys know nothing about IT, and surprisingly, even less about market dynamics. If they insist on blanketing the city with wi-fi from the get-go, providing equal access to all or whatever they call it nowadays, there will never be any google, earthlink, nobody, that will provide seed money for this cockamamie plan.
I agree with the previous poster, but I would like to take it one step further and limit the PILOT project to the more affluent areas. Yes, eventually the "hood" will get wifi too, but first we need those those grouchy, impatient people from the west side to be our guinea pigs to determine the market for this. If it doesn't work there, it won't work in other areas. If Randi convinces the mayor and his minders of the validity of this approach ITA can turn this dead-ender project into a winner.
LA Daily News: Wi-Fi wilts in L.A. and maybe it's for the best
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Municipal governments across the nation have been experimenting with the trendy idea of providing low-cost citywide wireless Internet access. Because results have been mixed, it's no surprise that the Wi-Fi proposals in Los Angeles have not advanced too far in recent years.
And it just may be for the best.
Neither the Metropolitan Transportation Authority nor the five-county Metrolink system has been able to lure a wireless provider to serve the subways or trains. And a city of L.A. initiative to create a citywide Wi-Fi system lost steam after Earthlink decided to pull out.
L.A.'s proposal wisely attempted to avoid committing taxpayer dollars to the project, which aimed to grant a wireless technology provider access to public rights of way. In return, the provider would foot the bill for installing the network. But apparently Earthlink wasn't convinced it could make enough money this way.
High-speed Internet access has been expanding rapidly in urban areas in recent years and it seems unnecessary for government to get its clumsy hands involved.
Besides, the argument that municipal Wi-Fi systems are needed to help low-income residents is also questionable. Wi-Fi is most useful for laptop owners. If people have the money to purchase a laptop, why can't they get Wi-Fi access, too?
The city of L.A. and other public agencies in the region might do well to pull the plug on their Wi-Fi initiatives for the time being. Their time and resources would be better spent concentrating on balancing the budget, reducing gang violence and picking up trash.
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