Philly Considers Wireless Internet for All
By DAVID B. CARUSO, Associated Press Writer
PHILADELPHIA - For about $10 million, city officials believe they
can turn all 135 square miles of Philadelphia into the world's
largest wireless Internet hot spot.
The ambitious plan, now in the works, would involve placing
hundreds, or maybe thousands of small transmitters around the city
probably atop lampposts. Each would be capable of communicating
with the wireless networking cards that now come standard with many
computers.
Once complete, the network would deliver broadband Internet almost
anywhere radio waves can travel including poor neighborhoods
where high-speed Internet access is now rare.
And the city would likely offer the service either for free, or at
costs far lower than the $35 to $60 a month charged by commercial
providers, said the city's chief information officer, Dianah
Neff.
"If you're out on your front porch with a laptop, you could dial
in, register at no charge, and be able to access a high speed
connection," Neff said. "It's a technology whose time is
here."
If the plan becomes a reality, Philadelphia could leap to the
forefront of a growing number of cities that have contemplated
offering wireless Internet service to residents, workers and
guests.
Chaska, Minn., a suburb of Minneapolis, began offering citywide
wireless Internet access this year for $16 a month. The signal
covers about 13 square miles.
Corpus Christi, Texas, has been experimenting with a system
covering 20 square miles that would be used (for now) only by
government employees.
Over the past year, Cleveland has added some 4,000 wireless
transmitters in its University Circle, Midtown and lakefront
districts. The service is free, and available to anyone who passes
through the areas.
Some 1,016 people were logged in to the system at 2:20 Tuesday
afternoon, said Lev Gonick, chief information officer at Case
Western Reserve University, which is spearheading the project and
paying for a chunk of it.
"We like to say it should be like the air you breathe free and
available everywhere," Gonick said. "We look at this like PBS or
NPR. It should be a public resource."
In New York, city officials are negotiating to sell wireless
carriers space on 18,000 lampposts for as much as $21.6 million
annually. T-Mobile USA Inc., Nextel Partners Inc., IDT Corp. and
three other wireless carriers want the equipment to increase their
networks' capacity.
One part of the 15-year deal is cheap Wi-Fi phones for
neighborhoods where less than 95 percent of residents have home
phones. IDT, which has agreed to market the cheaper phone service
in those neighborhoods, would pay lower rates for poles there than
other companies would in wealthier areas.
Wireless technology has improved by leaps and bounds in recent
years and become drastically less expensive.
The new "wireless mesh" technology under consideration in
Philadelphia has made it possible to expand those similar networks
over entire neighborhoods, with the help of relatively cheap
antennas.
Neff estimated it would cost about $10 million to pay for the
initial infrastructure for the system, plus $1.5 million a year to
maintain.
Philadelphia Mayor John F. Street, a technology buff who carries a
wireless handheld computer everywhere he goes, appointed a
14-member committee last week to work out the specifics of his
city's plan, including any fees, or restrictions on its use.
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The WiFi revolution here is not that prominent.Should more be
done?We are going to lag behind if nothing's done.Can anyone here
knowledgeable care to share their experiences in using WiFi?
