(Silver Spring, MD) As the number of municipal broadband initiatives mount, skeptics await what they believe will be the inevitable collapse of these government-backed ventures. Although it’s relatively easy to build communications networks, running them in a financially viable manner is another matter altogether, the doubters say.
But a group of muni-broadband proponents and industry representatives speaking here today at the Freedom-to-Connect (F2C) conference countered that proposition, pointing to a number of factors that make muni-broadband networks a success. “I don’t know what business models will be successful, bit it will probably be some confluence of business models,” said Ron Sege, CEO of wireless broadband tech provider Tropos.
Among the muni-Wi-Fi models out there are ad supported networks, such as that proposed by Google in San Francisco, subscriber-sponsored services, typified by EarthLink’s Wi-Fi efforts, municipally sponsored services and private networks run for the sole benefits of cities, among other models.
Anti-competitive behavior by incumbents don’t help matters, Sege said. Moreover, getting access to poles is a big problem for some Wi-Fi operators, a situation that could be resolved by giving Wi-Fi providers the same kind of federally legislated pole attachment rights that cable operators have. “Just as Congress in the 1980s made it easy for cable operators to attach to telephone poles, they could do the same thing here,” he said.
Muni-broadband attorney Jim Baller said a key factor to the recent surge in muni-broadband activity is growing acceptance by the public. “A key factor to success is that the public is getting it.”
Again, one thing holding back muni-broadband is anti-competitive behavior by the incumbents, Baller contended, with some phone companies undermining laws that permit municipalities to launch broadband services. Antitrust actions against these trouble makers, however, is not an option.
“For all of you who think the antitrust laws are a solution, forget it. They’re [antitrust lawsuits] too expensive, they take too long and there are too many victims along the way,” he said.
Esme Vos of Muniwireless.com said that the rise of big-city Wi-Fi projects point to the economic benefits that can be derived from municipal networks. Cities see Wi-Fi as a way to not only offer consumer broadband services but also as a means of cutting their own communications and personnel costs.
But, not all muni-broadband efforts are based on Wi-Fi. James Salter, CEO of fiber network construction company Atlantic Engineering said “wireless has its place, but it doesn’t solve the real core issue as to why the U.S. is 19th in terms of broadband.” Phone companies (with the exception of Verizon) and cable companies aren’t moving the ball either because they are just trying “to pump that antiquated copper and coax.”
Municipalities, on the other hand, could take the lead by building fiber-to-the-premises networks. “Municipalities may be the broadband savior,” Salter said. Atlantic Engineering has built 53 muni-fiber projects and “the average market share for these guys is between 50% to 60%. People flock to them because the service is so much better.”
Cynthia Brumfield at 1:49 PM|Comments(0)
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