The city of Miami Beach seems keen on getting free Wi-Fi outdoors (not a bad idea) but also indoors (questionable). So they are running tests to see if the access points that mounted on outdoor poles will be sufficient to give 70% coverage inside a building up to the second floor. The city’s contract with IBM requires the latter to provide 95% outdoor coverage as well.
But what if it makes more sense to concentrate on very good outdoor coverage in areas where people will use the Wi-Fi service intensively? For example, Miami Beach could target areas where people whip out iPhones (searching Google maps) or where people sit outside with laptops, and instead tell IBM to make sure that service in those areas is very good. I am shocked to see how inflexible some cities are in focusing on these 95% – 70% coverage numbers. These are totally irrelevant to most Wi-Fi users.
Note to cities: focus on the users!
- where are they?
- where do they expect coverage?
- how fast do they need the Wi-Fi service to be?
- what applications are they using?
- what devices are they using – iPhones? Mac Books?
- what should the login page look like so users don’t have to go through stupid splash screens?
- how much are they willing to pay, if any?
- where should service be free of charge?
- what other city services could use the Wi-Fi network to make them more efficient?
- which local businesses can use it?
Looks like the MSO’s are stepping up finally!
From DSLreport Web site:
Cablevision Expands Free Wi-Fi Network
Coverage now extends into CT, Dutchess/Westchester Counties…
08:48AM Wednesday Oct 15 2008 by Karl Bode
tags: business • wireless • Cablevision
Cablevision has reached out to us to note that their effort to provide free Wi-Fi to all of their broadband subscribers is moving along. After lighting up a massive swath of Long Island in September, the company says they’ve activated high traffic areas of Connecticut — as well as in Westchester/Dutchess counties in NY. The project was announced last May, will take roughly two years to complete, and will cost Cablevision about $100 per customer (Cablevision has 3.1 million cable customers, 2.4 million of whom have broadband). The service offers symmetrical 1.5Mbps speeds, according to Cablevision.
The move helps Cablevision differentiate themselves from FiOS across their footprint. You might recall that Verizon once offered free Wi-Fi in Manhattan, but scrapped the project back in 2005 because they feared it cannibalized the sale of their (then) $80 EVDO service. Cablevision COO Tom Rutledge has stated that Wi-Fi and Cablevision’s planned DOCSIS 3.0 deployment combined will cost roughly about $315 million.
According to Cablevision, this is already the “largest and most advanced consumer Wi-Fi network in the nation, based on geographic coverage.” The company also says they have more than doubled the size of its activated Optimum Wi-Fi service area just since its initial deployment update early last month. According to users in Cablevision markets, the company is deploying BelAir 100S Strand Mounted Wireless Multi-service Nodes and Cisco Aironet 1500 Series mesh access points on utility poles.
Dan–where are you now?
Been a long time…
John
80211@comcast.net