MuniWireless readers will be interested in joining a web-cast and live chat of the New America Foundation’s Wireless Future Program on Wednesday, February 6. The session will look at the future of muni wirless through the experience in Pennsylvania and two new reports from the Foundation will be presented. To participate in the event, send your name, affiliation, and contact information to communications@newamerica.net. A panel of experts from the government, industry and academia will be giving presentations at the event which will be webcast live, starting at noon, Eastern Standard Time. Additionally, there will be an IRC chatroom that will allow you to ask questions during the webcast.
Sascha Meinrath was kind enough to send us the details you’ll need to know to participate. The news release, with pertinent details, appears below:
The Future of Municipal Wireless
The Two States of Pennsylvania
Wednesday, February 6, 2008
12:00 p.m. – 2:00 p.m. EST
New America Foundation
1630 Connecticut Ave, NW
7th Floor
Washington, DC
When EarthLink announced its decision to withdraw further investments in municipal wireless networks in November 2007, the future of Philadelphia’s network, along with hundreds of municipal wireless projects, became uncertain. (NPR recently reported on the withdrawal.) Wireless Philadelphia, the nation’s first big-city municipal wireless initiative, led the way for cities to invest in broadband infrastructure. Although a number of other muni wireless networks have been set up and are running successfully (such as St. Cloud, FL and Chaska and Minneapolis, MN) troubles with the Philadelphia model serve as a warning for the future of municipal wireless. Meanwhile, cities like Pittsburgh must overcome state pre-emption laws, pushed through by incumbent carriers, aimed at preventing towns and counties from filling broadband gaps with government-subsidized services.
Two new reports from the New America Foundation on the state of municipal wireless in Philadelphia will be released: Joshua Breitbart, author of The Philadelphia Story: Learning from a Wireless Pioneer, will discuss how Wireless Philadelphia evolved and will continue to impact the future of public and private investment in municipal networks. Dr. Jon Peha uses Pittsburgh, PA as a case study for his new economic analysis that compares four alternative models for muni wireless networks: Sustainability of Possible Models for a Wireless Metropolitan-Area Network.
Our other panelists will describe several innovative and successful community wireless networks including: the FunkFeuer network in Austria; the Austin Wireless City Project of Texas; the City of St. Cloud’s free citywide WiFi network in Florida; and Minneapolis’s wireless network in Minnesota. Each will discuss the future of municipal networks and focus on key issues that impact the sustainability of networks, the roles of government agencies and decision-makers, the use of “open” technologies, and the use of innovative business and pricing models.
Closing Remarks
The Honorable Mike Doyle (D-PA)
Vice Chairman, Subcommittee on Telecommunications
House Commerce Committee
Featured Speakers
Joshua Breitbart
Principal and Co-Founder
Ethos Wireless
Jonathan Baltuch
President
Marketing Resources, Inc.
Aaron Kaplan
Director
FunkFeuer (Austria)
Jon Peha
Associate Director of the Center for Wireless and Broadband Networking Carnegie-Mellon University
Richard MacKinnon
Founder and President
Austin Wireless City Project
Sascha D. Meinrath
Research Director, Wireless Future Program
New America Foundation
To RSVP for this event, reply to this email: communications@newamerica.net with name, affiliation, and contact information.
If you have questions, call or email Liz Wu at (202) 986-2700 x315 or wu@newamerica.net.
I”m a little concerned that you are using a consultant that did a biased and almost destroyed any chance of a deployment in Sahuarita, Arizona and was running around using statistics that were not only inaccurate in St. Cloud but also had to have the mayor dispute them publicly. That doesn’t bode well for credibility of the panel.
Don’t worry, Rory. The webcast was held in early 2008 and the Sahuarita project is on hold.