The Economist cites need for muni Wi-Fi

By on May 29, 2007 in Applications

The Economist observes that residential service “was never going to be the mainstay for municipal Wi-Fi” but that where competitive services are not available “they quickly become so the moment municipal Wi-Fi presses its nose to the window.”The Economist observes that residential service “was never going to be the mainstay for municipal Wi-Fi” but that where competitive services are not available “they quickly become so the moment municipal Wi-Fi presses its nose to the window.”

Following a week of media angst over EarthLink’s re-evaluation of its position in the market, it was refreshing to see such an insightful analysis.

The Economist rightly observes “When Earthlink says it is re-evaluating its position in the municipal Wi-Fi market, what it really means is that it can’t make money out of communities with fewer than 2,500 households per square mile. Even then, it needs assurances that the city will commit to buying a big chunk of the network’s capacity for such “anchor tenancies” as emergency services, traffic and parking control, video surveillance and internet telephony, as well as automated meter reading and other utility services.”

It concludes that the future of municipal wireless broadband rests on making cities safer, saner and simpler to manage. Trivial pursuits like downloading songs or posting video clips can be safely left to phone and cable companies.

Click here to read the story.

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One Response to The Economist cites need for muni Wi-Fi

  1. David H. Deans June 2, 2007 at 7:18 am #

    It was just a matter of time before the euphoria from the Wi-Fi boosters would be balanced by commentary that raises some valid questions regarding how this technology is suited for applications beyond limited range hotspots.

    Of course, an overly pessimistic bias can influence these editorials, just in the same way that the MuniWireless boosters can be overly optimistic. Regardless, I still believe that it’s helpful that the Economist and the BBC are covering this topic — even if some bias is apparent, and even if the perspectives of people who are quoted are slanted towards their vested interests.

    Let’s not forget, this website is heavily sponsored by equipment vendors, and so people might question the objectivity of what they read here — long before they question the objectivity of the Economist or the BBC.

    So, instead of devoting column space to cries of indignation about unfair media coverage, or perspective on how we should interpret that coverage, perhaps it would be wiser to focus on more substantive issues.

    Surely, the best counter-argument to published concerns about MuniWireless project viability is to continue sharing verifiable facts about meaningful progress — where communities set realistic objectives for their projects, and then reached those goals.

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