Time for a Muni Wi-Fi Reality Check?
Aug 14, 2007
Last year, we blogged about the various plans to develop municipal Wi-Fi networks in cities around the U.S., including Anaheim, D.C., Boston and San Francisco. While programs vary by city, the promise of muni Wi-Fi has generally been to offer free and/or low-cost Internet access to residents and businesses to bring more people online and to spur economic development.
The reality has been that several cities have experienced roll-out delays (like the recent brouhaha in San Francisco), and Forrester Research reported last month that most consumers haven't used municipal networks in areas where they're available.
GigaOm's Om Malik sums up the situation with in a post yesterday about muni Wi-Fi's "great (unmet) expectations." Malik points to a report by an independent consultant named Craig Settles, who recently surveyed economic development professionals to get their thoughts on wired and wireless municipal networks. Like Malik, Settles believes that it's important to adjust expectations about what municipal networks can, and should, deliver. You can download a PDF of Settles' report here.
Tags:
Broadband, muni wi-fi, Om Malik, Wireless
