Muni wireless is alive and well in Chi town

Chicago is sallying forth with plans for its municipal Wi-Fi network, despite on-going speculation about the future direction of one of its key bidders‚Äö?Ñ?ÆEarthLink.Chicago is sallying forth with plans for its municipal Wi-Fi network, despite on-going speculation about the future direction of one of its key bidders‚Äö?Ñ?ÆEarthLink.

EarthLink is one of three companies, including AT&T and start-up NextWLAN, bidding for the rights to build and operate the network. EarthLink CEO Rolla Huff indicated at his company’s earnings call that the company plans to seek anchor tenant commitments from the cities with which it partners to improve its profit picture on muni deployments.

Just how much of an impact the shift in EarthLink’s position is having in Chicago, however, is debatable. What is new at EarthLink‚Äö?Ñ?Æa turn away from business models that are largely ad and subscriber -upported to one that relies on anchor tenant commitments‚Äö?Ñ?Æis not new in the market. AT&T, EarthLink’s biggest competitor in Chicago, has been seeking and getting anchor tenant commitments in cities such as Riverside and Napa in California, and St. Louis, Missouri.

According to a story in the Chicago Sun-Times, the city is looking to the provider to build the network at its own expense with the city providing access to city-owned light poles and other public structures on which antennas could be mounted. It’s a sure bet that anchor tenancy needs to be part of the deal, at least from the perspectives of EarthLink and AT&T.

The story quotes AT&T spokesperson Blair Klein saying that AT&T is focused on usage of the network other than just subscriber services: “The real sweet spot of citywide Wi-Fi for a city … is the 4.9 GHz system.” That 4.9 Ghz system operates in the licensed spectrum used for public safety. Klein, in the interview, also mentioned automatic meter reading. Hmmmm‚Äö?Ѭ?.is there any doubt that anchor tenancy is not on the table in the windy city?

The report confirms that, despite the general media’s inclination to declare the muni market dead, muni interest in deploying networks is alive and well. What’s new is that it’s grown up and, with maturation, is embracing the reality that network deployments are not a free lunch for politicians promising free stuff to their constituencies. Our own Editor-in-Chief Joe Panettieri is quoted in the story on the ever evolving business models.

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