MuniWireless

Early this year, Houston decided to take $3.5 million from EarthLink in exchange for releasing EarthLink from its obligation to build out the citywide Wi-Fi network. Houston had planned to create small Wi-Fi hotzones (called “Wi-Fi bubbles”) in targeted low-income neighborhoods.

Unfortunately, as the Houston Chronicle reports, instead of creating Wi-Fi hotzones that allow anyone in the neighborhood to access the Internet wirelessly, the city is limiting access to people who enrol in certain classes and programs in community centers:

“Instead, the…

People who happen to be in downtown Houston will be surprised to discover free Wi-Fi service in certain areas, thanks to the city, which is using the excess capacity from the parking meter Wi-Fi network, to provide access to residents and visitors. To find out where there’s access, go to the Houston Wi-Fi map.

Unlike Houston’s earlier plans to set up a citywide Wi-Fi network using EarthLink, the downtown hotzone is modest. EarthLink canceled its Houston plans and had to pay…

Mayor Bill White of Houston has decided to use the $3.5 million paid by EarthLink (out of the $5 million penalty for non-delivery of the Houston network) to build Wi-Fi “bubbles” (strange term, that one) in low-income parts of Houston (click here to read the Houston Chronicle article). The idea is that these “bubbles” will somehow bridge the digital divide.

The first question one should ask is: why isn’t the city of Houston suing EarthLink up the wazoo for breaching the…

Tropos Networks will deploy its MetroMesh to provide wireless broadband service to Houston’s Gulfton Super Neighborhood, as part of the city’s digital inclusion initiative. According to a company press release,  the neighborhood is the first in the initiative to be served. Other partners in the program include Hewlett-Packard, Microsoft, and Verizon Wireless. Click here to read the press release.

Wi-Fi Net News has a more comprehensive report on how this particular network fits into the city’s overall digital inclusion initiative. Click here…

The city of Houston plans to re-launch its muni wireless initiative and has issued an RFI to review proposals for the project. It was only a matter of time before cities recovered from the shockwaves from EarthLink’s retreat from the muni market and began re-evaluating how to provide broadband coverage. Houston is the first major city, among the many that put wireless initiatives on hold in the post-EarthLink shakeout, to announce plans to move ahead and re-issue an RFI. Houston…

The $5 million penalty EarthLink paid to Houston for failure to begin building its municipal network on time bought the company nine months to decide what to do. Houston is not waiting. It’s using the money to finance digital inclusion programs and build out hot spots in low-income neighborhoods around the city.The $5 million penalty EarthLink paid to Houston for failure to begin building its municipal network on time bought the company nine months to decide what to do. Houston…