DENVER-Ricochet Networks Inc. is “actively evaluating a number of options relative to its business prospects” to continue to service existing customers and to grow its network, according to Chief Executive Officer Greg Sadler.
Ricochet has been unable to secure the market partners it believes are necessary to operate and expand its network, according to the company. Rumors have been swirling that most, if not all, of the Denver-based Ricochet staff has been fired, but the company’s Denver and San Diego networks are still operational. Ricochet declined to comment on the rumors.
The service, which operates in the 902-928 MHz and 2.4 GHz unlicensed frequency bands, allows users to wirelessly connect to the Internet at speeds of up to 176 kilobits per second. It costs $45 per month for unlimited service, and its modems sell for $100.
Ricochet was originally parented by Metricom Inc., which filed for bankruptcy with a debt load of more than $1 billion in 2001, less than a year after launching the network. Within months, Ricochet Networks’ new parent company, Aerie Networks, acquired the assets for the Ricochet network from Metricom for $8.25 million.
The re-born company re-launched service in Denver in August 2002 and in San Diego a month later to much fanfare, with a newly focused business plan to address the needs of city and county public-safety entities. The company, for example, donated modems and service to the city of Denver in exchange for the opportunity to jointly develop public-safety applications. Ricochet said then that it planned to pursue a similar business plan in other markets across the country.
In fact, the re-born company said early on that it intended to reactivate the network in all 17 markets Metricom had launched during its short existence, including Los Angeles and San Francisco by the end of 2002. So far though, Denver and San Diego remain the only Ricochet-served markets.
