MuniWireless

Prestonsburg, Kentucky (pop. 4000) is delivering free Wi-Fi service in the center of town for a mere $8500. The secret: they are using Meraki’s inexpensive wireless access points. The city had issued a public tender for its network but the bidders were asking too much money (in some cases over $100,000). Meraki’s equipment is used by in San Francisco and in many developing countries where wireless mesh equipment from mainstream vendors is simply too expensive for the local ISPs.

Rural towns and counties are continuing to set up muni Wi-Fi networks because cable and DSL operators are not interested in delivering service to these areas. They are also terrific places to launch WiMAX service because of the absence of high-speed broadband access. Take our poll (see right-hand side) — do you think WiMAX is more attractive in rural than urban areas?)

UPDATE: Make sure you read this article about Meraki:

Is Meraki as inexpensive and open-source as it seems?

Related stories on rural wireless broadband:

Wi-Fi service as a utility in Tabor, Iowa

Racine County Wi-Fi: providing access where it’s really needed

Craven County, North Carolina goes wireless: rural Wi-Fi connects schools, towns

Cambria County, Pennsylvania launches countywide wireless network