If aliens were to land on our planet, the first thing they would probably notice is our addiction to Wi-Fi networks.
Indeed, a new report from ABI Research indicates that in 2006, the number of commercial Wi-Fi hotspots will reach 143,700 worldwide representing a 47-percent worldwide growth rate from 2005’s figures.
But unless our alien visitors stay a while, they may not see San Francisco’s citywide Wi-Fi network launched, as the project has become mired in city politics.
Even though the city’s RFP process was carried out in full and wrapped up in April, the city’s board of supervisors requested in September that they city now study proposals from vendors other than EarthLink Inc. and Google Inc. to determine whether it might be cheaper in the long run for the city to build and operate the network on its own instead of contracting with EarthLink and Google for the project.
EarthLink and Google responded by reaching out to San Francisco’s citizenry via several community forums during which the companies said they talked to residents about the benefits of a citywide municipal wireless network. More meetings are scheduled to take place between now and Dec. 7.
The companies said Google intends to offer free citywide service at speeds of about 300 kilobits per second, while EarthLink plans to deliver a paid-for, higher-speed offering with speeds up to 1 megabit per second. EarthLink said it also plans to offer 1 Mbps access available on a wholesale basis to other Internet service providers as part of its Open Access wholesale program along with making business class services available for the municipal government, enterprises and institutions.
The two companies put out a press release laced with ego-massaging and chest thumping. “San Francisco is one of the most progressive cities in the world and our joint proposal with Google will bring the promise of the Internet to San Francisco, the high-tech capital of the world,” touted Don Berryman, executive vice president of EarthLink and president of the ISP’s municipal networks unit.
And from Google’s Chris Sacca, head of Special Initiatives, “At Google, we see building this network as an opportunity to be an inspiration to the world. We hope that by allowing Internet access to be universal, we are creating an impetus for other cities around the world to do the same for their citizens and visitors. Closing the divide in technology access is something we are very passionate about.”
How EarthLink and Google ended up playing defense isn’t clear.
“People have to realize that whenever you deploy in a big city with lots of politics, things are not going to go smoothly or quickly,” said Esme Vos, founder of Muniwireless.com. “You can’t expect things to happen overnight in a city the size of San Francisco.”
Craig Settles, author of “Fighting the Good Fight for Municipal Wireless” agrees with Vos and added that San Francisco’s biggest mistake was trying to rush its Wi-Fi project along.
“What you’re seeing in San Francisco is a classic example of what can happen if these projects are not pursued in the proper way,” offered Settles. “You have to do extensive research prior to opening up your RFP process, and San Francisco didn’t do that. There should have been a needs-analysis study among the city’s constituents to identify how people want the network structured. This could have helped determine what the technical options were, and then they could have proceeded to talking with vendors.
“They did it backwards in San Francisco, and now we’re seeing the result. Had they done their homework, the current issues and concerns would have been vetted out during the research phase. It’s all about defining needs upfront.”
EarthLink, Google and San Francisco city officials didn’t respond to requests for comments.
