Originally Published: July 2008

This is a continuation of the theme ‘free’, but from a different perspective. It raises some likely threats to big telecommunication companies about the future of WiFi (so pay attention). Currently, this is a phenomenon gaining prominence in the states, and it is gradually hitting Australia (see links).

Cities across the US (and world) are adding themselves to the list of places where anybody can access free WiFi (and I mean anybody, no catches). This is a new type of ‘free’, one not being instigated by a corporation looking to sell its wares for access (Starbucks) or funded by an ad supported business model (as with digital music). It is different because its primary focus is not on profit it is rather utilitarian: ‘(to make) high-speed internet access more available and affordable’.  What is important is that places embracing this new model of wireless broadband aren’t little and obscure. For example, Texas (Corpus Christi), California (San Francisco), Massachusetts (Cambridge), the Government of Lebu, Chilli, and Pennsylvania (Philadelphia).

This is not something that any of the big service providers saw coming …

This is happening partially because the larger US companies have failed to convert their costly deals with cities into a live network; but mostly because they have not adapted to the ‘new world’ where everyone is a participant (whether they like it or not).  For example, in San Francisco EarthLink’s internet deal would have cost the city in the vicinity of US$14-$17 million (this was a deal that failed and subsequently fell through). Frankly, the residents didn’t and still don’t care. Instead they are taking part in creating their own ‘wireless cloud’ for a quarter of the amount it would have cost with EarthLink.

The company which is making it work is a group of volunteers and a startup called Meraki. Meraki is a company set up by two MIT classmates (who also created their own wireless network in Cambridge, MA). How it works is that volunteers house Meraki Minis (or repeaters) that carry the wireless signal around the city. Therefore when someone joins, the network gets bigger (for free). This maybe how wireless broadband transcends to the masses. Interestingly, there is someone funding Meraki, but they are not passing the fee onto the users – probably not a big surprise that company is Google.