MuniWireless

Wildfire Broadband appears to have shut down its Wi-Fi service in downtown Scottsdale (Arizona). According to the East Valley Tribune, “the paid service meant to capitalize on flashy new downtown projects and an influx of new residents had to compete with free Wi-Fi service that has become increasingly commonplace at coffee shops, restaurants and hotels.”

It’s hard to make an outdoor Wi-Fi service hugely profitable. First, you need a lot of people using the service for a long enough time that…

Over the weekend, Kite Networks shut down operations in Tempe and Chandler, Arizona, triggering worries that the plug had been pulled on the metro wireless network that serves the two cities. Today, the service is back up and under new ownership.

That sent a shudder through muni wireless circles. Kite was once considered one of the “big three” companies specializing in big metro-scale wireless deployments. But the shutdown turned out to be a temporary, accidental outage occasioned by the change of…

BelAir Networks, in separate releases, today announced a three-radio multi-service mesh product portfolio, the BelAir100T, and an outdoor deployment in Arizona.BelAir Networks today announced a three-radio multi-service mesh product portfolio.

According to a company press release, the BelAir100Tis designed to bridge the gap between city and public safety wireless networks, providing service for data communications on both the unlicensed 2.4 ghz band and the licensed public safety 4.9 ghz band.

Today, the company also announced a deployment in partnership with Sunray Technologies…

A feasibility study conducted by Columbia Telecommunications Corporation (CTC), a consulting firm based in Maryland, for the city of Tucson, Arizona recommends that the city issue an RFP for a citywide Wi-Fi network, but that the RFP should balance the risk and reward offered to the winning bidder. The study also includes interesting statistics about broadband use in Tucson as well as the estimated costs of setting up a network. A feasibility study conducted by Columbia Telecommunications Corporation (CTC), a…

Flagstaff, Arizona has issued a request for proposals (RFP) for a citywide Wi-Fi mesh network that will be used both for public Internet access and municipal purposes. Like the Albuquerque RFP, the Flagstaff request wants a private company that will pay for and own the network. Flagstaff, Arizona has issued a request for proposals (RFP) for a citywide Wi-Fi mesh network that will be used both for public Internet access and municipal purposes. The deadline for submitting responses is 29…

On 29 April 2006, I posted the RFP issued by Mesa, Arizona for a municipal Wi-Fi network. The city announced that EarthLink and MobilePro are finalists. The other bidders were Azulstar, MetroFi and Able Information Technologies.On 29 April 2006, I posted the RFP issued by Mesa, Arizona for a municipal Wi-Fi network. The city announced that EarthLink and MobilePro are finalists. The other bidders were Azulstar, MetroFi and Able Information Technologies.

The goals of the City of Mesa Wi-Fi project include:

–Development…