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Reader's Digest Condensed Version

OK, I think I'm ready to tie up the loose ends after 10 days of processing. Here's my Reader's Digest Condensed Version of What Recent Events Mean and Why Muni Fi is Here to Stay.

1. The demise of Big City Free Wi Fi was a market correction that was long overdue.
a. Big Cities were the wrong place to start to prove out unlicensed spectrum wireless. Too much risk too early, too many politics, too much competition among large incumbent ISPs, too much radio congestion, and too many licensed wireless alternatives.
b. Free never made sense - someone has to pay because there are unavoidable capital and operating costs in any network project.
c. The base of the industry was too narrow to meet the demands - this industry has a long way to go, and there will be more service providers, network operators, and system integrators in time. But too much was riding in these early years on just a few companies. So when one major player stumbled, everyone caught their collective breath. But it was a single company that was in a difficult position to begin with. Companies struggle and fall all the time.

2. Public sector applications still need a wireless network. Large cities should focus on applications and realistic solutions. Smaller cities should continue to engage with private sector providers and seek synergies. There is a lot more work to be done to determine sound business approaches based on municipal applications, and we should study success as well as failure, and share success where we find it.
a. Mobility is still king - more and more applications need to be available out in the field.
b. Infrastructure demands support and more efficient management.
c. The march of digital applications goes on and business process improvement offers tremendous cost savings, but it will take work to make changes.
d. Public Safety applications in particular deserve attention because lower crime and saved lives are two key reasons for city government.
e. The Internet will continue to disrupt the status quo for years to come.
3. Rural Broadband is the biggest potential beneficiary of unlicensed wireless. The low cost and modular nature of this technology make it ideal for low-cost, low-risk small projects, a great fit for underserved areas that still lack reasonably priced broadband alternatives, or any alternatives at all.
4. The Digital Divide demands creative, cost-efficient solutions and it will continue to get the attention of politicians. But covering the entire city with a $100 million unlicensed wireless network is overkill for distinct geographic segments of the city and the population that face Digital Divide problems. It would be better to provide subsidies or point solutions, for instance. Big City Wi Fi was the wrong solution for Digital Divide, and the sooner we found that out, the better for all of us.

Instead of looking at Muni Fi as a one-size-fits-all technology miracle-in-a-can, a realistic assessment would see it as but one tool in a toolbox that will enable creative solutions for some of our problems. Just as we shouldn't throw it away because of recent market corrections, neither should we try to turn it into more than it really is. We should value it for what it can do and make it a part of a more comprehensive approach to solving the need for Last Mile Broadband Infrastructure for all.

Down with Hype, Long Live Reality-Based Approaches!!

Posted on September 06, 2007 at 08:31 AM

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