Wireless Community

Icon

February 10, 2006 • 1:58 pm 0

ViewersChoice.org Interview on Network Neutrality

Yesterday I was video interviewed (through my wireless computer using my iSight) by Marc Strassman for “ViewersChoice.org”:1. You can “read the entire page”:2, or just “watch the video”:3 below.

http://wirelesscommunity.files.wordpress.com/2005/10/spectropolis-press-release1.pdfwp-content/uploads/2006/02/Dana%20Spiegel%20Net%20Neutrality%20Interview%20-%20ViewersChoice.org.mp4

[1]http://www.viewerschoice.org/
[2]http://www.viewerschoice.org/pages/netneutrality4-5551212.html
[3]http://wirelesscommunity.files.wordpress.com/2005/10/spectropolis-press-release1.pdfwp-content/uploads/2006/02/Dana%20Spiegel%20Net%20Neutrality%20Interview%20-%20ViewersChoice.org.mp4

Filed under: Community Wireless, Interview, Network Neutrality, News, Policy

February 8, 2006 • 9:49 am 0

Network Neutrality Senate Hearing and Reports

Yesterday the US Senate Commerce Committee “held a hearing on Network Neutrality”:1, gearing up for possible legislation that would encode “network neutrality”:2 into law. “Reuters reports”:3:

bq. High-speed Internet providers and Internet content companies clashed before lawmakers on Tuesday, in a dispute over whether a law enshrining the right to surf anywhere on the Web would help or harm consumers. Representatives of local telephone and cable companies that offer fast Internet access, known as broadband, said passing a new law could stymie innovation while companies like Google said that could happen without legislation. Broadband providers have largely pledged that consumers will be able to access any Internet site. But some also said they may charge more for services that use faster private Internet networks, like downloading movies. In the middle were lawmakers who were divided and uncertain about whether they should act. Republicans and Democrats both expressed support for unfettered Internet surfing, but a few Republicans cautioned about legislating too quickly.

“The testimony has been posted”:4, and there’s lots of commentary available:

* “Dueling Network Buzzwords: ‘Neutrality’ Versus ‘Diversity’”:8 (Technology Daily)
* “Politicos divided on need for ‘net neutrality’ mandate”:5 (News.com)
* “Ensuring Open Internet an Issue Before Congress”:6 (MediaWeek)
* “Network Neutrality Hearing Reactions”:7 (Media Policy Blog)

*Update:* “ArsTechnica has a good summary report”:9 with quotes from the testimony.

[1]http://commerce.senate.gov/hearings/witnesslist.cfm?id=1705
[2]http://www.wirelesscommunity.info/network-neutrality
[3]http://today.reuters.com/news/newsArticle.aspx?type=technologyNews&storyID=2006-02-07T232443Z_01_N07259780_RTRUKOC_0_US-INTERNET-NEUTRALITY.xml
[4]http://commerce.senate.gov/hearings/witnesslist.cfm?id=1705
[5]http://news.com.com/Politicos+divided+on+need+for+net+neutrality+mandate/2100-1028_3-6036231.html?tag=nefd.lede
[6]http://www.mediaweek.com/mw/news/recent_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1001958729
[7]http://mediapolicy.blogspot.com/
[8]http://www.njtelecomupdate.com/lenya/telco/live/tb-MBSE1139339451850.html
[9]http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20060208-6139.html

Filed under: Network Neutrality, Policy

February 7, 2006 • 11:55 pm 0

UTOPIA municipal fiber delivers faster, cheaper internet than any other network in the US

“Sascha Meinrath posts”:1 about “UTOPIA”:2, which is a municipal fiber network that provides the highest speed internet available for consumers in the US.

bq. UTOPIA is an 14-city consortium serving hundreds of thousands of people. As UTOPIA user, Brad Thurber sums up, “The speeds are insane… We’ve been on the system for a month now and there has been absolutely no down time.” According to Utopia’s website, “As a minimum, UTOPIA will deliver 100 Mbps of bandwidth to every connected home and 1 Gbps of bandwidth to every business.” Services are already available at “10Mbps for $39.95/month”:3, “15Mbps for $44/month”:4, or get “Internet, Phone, and Cable services for around $90-120/month”:5.

So if a municipal network can bring to suburban and rural areas the same high-speed internet at _cheap prices_ that European and Asian telecom companies make available, what does that say about our big telco and cable companies? What sort of mis-management and money wasting has gone on at these big private companies like AT&T, Verizon, and SBC to make them unable to service their markets efficiently? If I were an investor in any of these companies, I’d be seriously questioning them right now, and holding them accountable for not persuing a significant marketplace.

[1]http://www.saschameinrath.com/2006feb04utopia_municipal_fiber_network_demonstrates_that_low_cost_pricing_and_high_speed_networking_doable_in_the_us_too
[2]http://www.utopianet.org/
[3]http://www.mstarmetro.com/services/iband.html
[4]http://xmission.net/utopia/index.html
[5]http://www.mstarmetro.com/pricing/utopia.html

Filed under: Community Wireless, Muniwireless, Policy

February 6, 2006 • 12:40 pm 0

NYC Grassroots Media Conference, Feb 11 @ New School University

NYCwireless will be presenting at the “*The Spectrum Spectacular: Community Wireless and Smashing Your Way into the Thrill Ride of the Century*”:1 panel at 11:15. I hope to see you there!

*Announcing the 3rd Annual NYC Grassroots Media Conference*
Saturday February 2nd at New School University
“65 Fifth Avenue at Thirteenth Street”:3
*Register Now! “http://www.nycgrassrootsmedia.org”:2*

The NYC Grassroots Media Coalition (NYCGMC) will present its third annual conference at New School University Saturday, February 11th from 10am to 6pm. The conference theme, forging stronger connections between independent media and communities organizing around issues of justice and equality, seeks to address pressing issues of representation and diversity within the NYC community and beyond. Registration for the event costs $20 for adults, $5 for youth and $30 at the door.

A projected one thousand students, activists, media makers, community workers and artists will convene in Manhattan for a day of more than 40 workshops, do-it-yourself (DIY) trainings, discussions, panels, art exhibitions and films. Kaajal Shah, of The Ave Magazine noted: “In these times, conferences like this are vital in helping to facilitate the process of engaging young people in ongoing organizing work. The struggle to find accurate, truthful media remains a struggle in our communities. It is our responsibility to not only hold these information sources accountable but to also have the ability to create our own tools of conveying our stories through our voices.” A goal of the conference is to address pressing media policy issues threatening to limit grassroots communication. Karen Helmerson, Director of Electronic Media and Film at New York State Council on the Arts said “The NYC Grassroots media conference offers a fresh look at policy in our digital society and broadens the scope of representation from the ground up – so critical to a healthy democracy.”

Workshops will include “STORMWATCH: The Struggle for a Renewed Activist Media after Hurricane Katrina” with Praxis Project, The People’s Hurricane Relief Fund & Oversight Coalition, Emergency Communities “Do It Yourself Media Criticism” with Fairness and Accuracy in News Reporting, “Media Policy: Why it Affects Everyone” with Free Press and NYC Wireless, “Using Youth Media to Fight Stereotypes” with Arab Women Active in the Arts and Media (AWAAM)

Community art exhibitions and film screenings presented by Hip Hop Association, the Human Rights Watch International Film Festival, Urban Visionaries, The Media That Matters Film Festival and Third World Newsreel. Katy Chevigny, Independent Filmmaker and Executive Director of Arts Engine, Inc. states: “New York City is filled with millions of voices, each with it’s own story to tell. The Grassroots Media Conference is one of the best events for media makers to share those stories and the strategies they employ for getting them out there!”

The NYC Grassroots Media Coalition is a project of Paper Tiger Television in collaboration with May First/People Link, North American Congress on Latin America (NACLA) and the NYC Independent Media Center.

For a full list of workshops descriptions, speakers, schedule information and to register please visit “http://www.nycgrassrootsmedia.org”:2

[1]http://www.nycgrassrootsmedia.org/2006session2
[2]http://www.nycgrassrootsmedia.org
[3]http://maps.google.com/?q=65%20Fifth%20Avenue,%20New%20York,%20NY%20(Grassroots%20Media%20Conference%20-%20New%20School%20University)

Filed under: Community Wireless, Event

February 2, 2006 • 3:43 pm 0

Cities Peg Wi-Fi as Next Must-Have Amenity

I was recently “interviewed for an article”:1 in the Knowledge@W.P. Carey magazine published by the W.P. Carey School of Business at Arizona State University:

bq. Robert St. Louis, professor of information technology at the W. P. Carey School of Business, adds that Wi-Fi is just one step in the right direction. “It’s part of the equation,” he says. “Free or low-cost connectivity plus a low-cost computer plus freeware equals the end of the digital divide.”

bq. St. Louis recalls watching a teacher in a financially struggling city school “beg” and scramble for computer equipment to use in the classroom. “Having computers in kids’ hands, and having those kids connected, would allow this teacher to do so many things he can’t do now,” St. Louis says.

bq. It is this kind of philanthropy that fuels NYCwireless, the non-profit organization that has been promoting and establishing public-access Wi-Fi hotspots throughout Manhattan since 2001. “Just as parks have benches and trees, community wireless is a community benefit,” says Dana Spiegel, executive Director of NYCwireless.

bq. Spiegel explains that his group started deploying community wireless in parks and open spaces as a good-neighbor effort, but the group has evolved to also offer access to low-income households that can ill afford the monthly broadband fee. “To raise the family up in terms of lifestyle and resources, they need Internet access,” he says.

bq. …

bq. In Tempe, Ariz., city managers are relying on a private company, MobilePro, to deploy and maintain a wireless network that will be available to the city departments for free and to citizens for reduced subscription fees. “About the time you get this thing built out, WiMax is going to come along,” says Bank One’s Clark. “What leverage does Tempe have to go to their provider and say, ‘Well, now you have to switch to WiMax.’”

bq. NYCwireless chief Spiegel doesn’t view obsolescence as a significant risk, just a circumstance to be factored into the deployment. Spiegel points to the strategy Philadelphia will follow with Earthlink at the helm of that city’s project. “They have a model for how often network equipment will have to be replaced and an estimation of the lifespan of the technology,” he explains. “Wi-Fi is going to be around for the next decade, and over the next five years, it will transform quite a bit. You build that into your plan.”

[1]http://knowledge.wpcarey.asu.edu/index.cfm?fa=viewArticle&id=1183

Filed under: Community Wireless, Interview, Muniwireless, NYCwireless

February 2, 2006 • 12:58 pm 0

Broadband access does matter to the economy, just as common sense would say it should

MIT and CMU have “released a study”:2 that shows empirically that access to broadband networks “does enhance economic growth and performance.”

bq. The essence of this study’s design is to differentiate geographic areas by their availability and/or use of broadband, then look at economic indicators for these areas over a long enough period to see if consistent deviations from the secular trend are observable, controlling for other factors known to distinguish among the areas.

This report is a must read for any policy-maker or person interested in _why_ competitive broadband and municipal networks are important. After careful data analysis, “The results support the view that broadband access _does_ enhance economic growth and performance, and that the assumed (and oft-touted) economic impacts of broadband are real and measurable.”

bq. We find that between 1998 and 2002, communities in which mass-market broadband became available by December 1999 experienced more rapid growth in (1) employment, (2) the number of businesses overall, and (3) businesses in IT-intensive sectors…. The magnitude of impacts estimated by our models are larger than we expected.

bq. …

bq. Policy makers who have been spending their time or money promoting broadband should take comfort that their efforts and investments are not in vain. Many significant public policy reforms and programs are in place or under consideration at the federal, state, and local levels to ensure competitive availability of broadband to all U.S. citizens, stimulate ongoing investment in broadband infrastructure, and facilitate the education and training that small business and residential customers need to make effective use of broadband’s capabilities. Such policies are indeed aimed at important goals. Broadband is clearly related to economic well-being and is thus a critical component of our national communications infrastructure.

bq. …

bq. Once broadband is available to most of the country, however, differences in economic outcomes are likely to depend more on how broadband is used than on its basic availability. The implication for policy makers is that a portfolio of broadband-related policy interventions that is reasonably balanced (i.e., also pays attention to demand-side issues such as training) is more likely to lead to positive economic outcomes than a single-minded focus on availability.

[1]http://cfp.mit.edu/groups/broadband/docs/2005/MeasuringBB_EconImpact.pdf
[2]http://www.broadbandproperties.com/2005issues/dec05issues/Measuring%20Broadband%20Eco%20Impact,%20Lehr,%20Gilett,%20Sirbu.pdf

Filed under: News, Policy

February 2, 2006 • 9:00 am 1

Bold prediction on the future state of Telcos

Esme Vos, of “MuniWireless”:2, makes a bold but realistic prediction on the future of Telcos as wholesale providers, and details why AT&T’s and BellSouth’s attempt to double dip just isn’t going to happen:

bq. The telcos’ desire to eat out of two pots – charging customers for access to the network and content providers for access to those customers – is nothing more than fantasy perpetuated by nervous managers to calm down nervous investors, who suspect that, indeed, the Age of Big Telecom has faded into history like bowler hats and crinolines.

bq. There are several reasons why telcos cannot eat out of two pots and why they will end up as wholesale providers:

bq. (1) there is now a business model that allows companies such as Google and the people who partner with them (municipalities, ISPs, content providers) to offer free Internet access, free voice calls and even free entertainment programs;

bq. (2) there are other parties offering high speed broadband (cable companies, municipalities, private providers) and these are often more innovative and closer to the consumer;

bq. (3) the telcos underestimate the contempt that most people feel for them and politicians will not back an industry that is so universally loathed;

bq. (4) the open network model has been proven in Europe and Asia to lead to higher rates of broadband penetration, lower prices and more bandwidth; and

bq. (5) high tech companies such as Intel, Microsoft, Google, Yahoo and Apple simply won’t let them.

[1]http://www.tropos.com/newsletters/2006-01-27_guestcommentary.html
[2]http://www.muniwireless.com

Filed under: Network Neutrality, News, Policy

February 2, 2006 • 8:19 am 0

Study: 'Digital divide' affects school success

This is an older article that I failed to post at the time, but eSchool News reports on a study that the “‘Digital divide’ affects school success”:1

bq. Having a computer at home increases the likelihood that students will graduate from high school, a UC-Santa Cruz researcher claims in a report that casts the digital divide in a new light. But others question the report’s conclusions.

The report details a number of key findings:

* Teenagers who have access to home computers are 6 to 8 percentage points more likely to graduate from high school than teens who lack access to a home computer, after reportedly controlling for individual, parental, and family characteristics.

* Only 50.6 percent of blacks and 48.7 percent of Latinos have access to home computers, compared with 74.6 percent of whites.

* Only 40.5 percent of blacks and 38.1 percent of Latinos have internet access at home, compared with 67.3 percent of whites.

* Among children, slightly more than half of all black and Latino children have access to a home computer, and about 40 percent have internet access at home. By comparison, 85.5 percent of white children have home computer access, and 77.4 percent can use the internet at home.

Clearly, as more of our society and economy is tied to the internet, these disparities within different ethnic groups is going to have a greater and greater impact, and will only serve to grow the digital divide.

This is one of the reasons why citywide municipal networks and muni-wireless networks are even more important, since they provide affordable and universal internet access across an entire city, regardless of the demographics of the local areas.

[1]http://www.eschoolnews.com/news/showStoryts.cfm?ArticleID=5999

Filed under: Muniwireless, News, Urban Wireless

February 1, 2006 • 3:44 pm 0

Fat Pipe, Always On, Get Out of the Way

“David Isenberg posted”:1 a great rhyme he wrote about Network Neutrality. Its punchline: *Fat Pipe, Always On, Get Out of the Way* is a line that we should all be trumpeting in our battle for a free internet.

bq. So make sure you pass this around far and wide! And be sure to make it to Washington, DC for the “Freedom-to-Connect”:2 conference.

bq. When Ed Whitacre, the head of AT&T, says,
“They’re not going to use my pipes for free”
he’s not talking about Them, he’s talking about Me.
He’s talking about Us, it should be plain to see.

bq. When Whitaker says “free” he’s not talking about beer.
It’s our Freedom of Speech that’s at stake here.
Whitaker wants to privatize our right to express.
And he’s even got some laws in front of the US Congress,
Bad laws.
Laws that would make everybody with a public hotspot register with the FCC.
Laws that would let the telephone companies discriminate
Information that is dangerous from info that is safe
But who are they to decide?
The Free Internet gives *us* that right.

bq. Now the law has a flaw, or so they say
So the telcos send our data to NSA
As if we’re all Osama and we might get away

bq. Freedom to connect,
it’s like every other right.
We’ve got to fight,
Or they’ll come and take it from us
in the middle of the night.

bq. The Bells want to split the Net in two,
Keep one part the same and give it to you.
A sliver of bandwidth that stays the same,
Even as Moore’s Law continues to change the game,
Until “our Internet” is a rutted dirt road,
And their piece is a turnpike with heavy, heavy tolls.

bq. Google and Yahoo and Microsoft and Skype,
They’re already successful, they can make deals for those pipes.
But when I want to publish stuff in my blog
It will not be OK for you to once again pay.
We already pay for our Internet connection.
We don’t need to subsidize a dying industry’s obsession!
If looking at my blog cost you an extra dime
You’d probably find another way to spend your time.

bq. More importantly, when you hackers field a fragile new app
You don’t want it blocked by Ed Whitacre’s crap,
Cause when Whitacre says, “They’re not going to use my pipes for free”
He’s not talking about Them, he’s talking about Me.
He’s talking about Us, that should be plain to see.

bq. Freedom to connect,
it’s like every other right.
We’ve got to fight,
Or they’ll come and take it from us
in the middle of the night.

bq. Internet freedom is Freedom of Speech.
You don’t need it if you’re just engaging in pleasantries.
But you do if you want an educated pesantry.
If kleptocrats are stealing, it’s important to know it.
If the mendocrats are lying it’s important to show it.
If you’ve got a whistle, you can’t ask their permission to blow it.

bq. Today Information is struggling to be free
So we can protect what’s left of Democracy.
Us little guys, we’ve got pieces of information
About who’s been holding back our once-and-future nation
From broadband penetration.
This information will never be on TV,
Another reason the Internet has to be free.

bq. When you sit there at your keyboard
and you struggle with the bugs,
You know creation is a process
not much different than love.
It is fragile as a flower in the morning dew
So you don’t want big brother fucking with you.

bq. If they fuck with you, you’ve gotta stand up and say.
Give me a Fat Pipe, Always On, Get Out of the Way.
The author of this saying is our own Tim Bray.
Fat Pipe, Always On, Get Out of the Way.

bq. I’m taking my bad poetry to Washington DC.
I’d like everybody in this room to come with me.
April 3 and 4 in Washington DC,
Freedom-to-Connect will be The Place to be
If you want the Internet to stay free.
I’m partnering with Pulver, and I’d like to get Tim,
And I’d like to get you, and her and him.

bq. In another revolution, Ben Franklin said,
“We must hang together or assuredly
we shall all hang separately.”
This statement is still true.
I trust you see its importance to you.
The Name of the Conference is Freedom to Connect.
April 3 and 4 in Washington DC,
Freedom-to-Connect is The place to be.
April 3 and 4 in Washington DC
We’ll take it home to Congress and the FCC.

bq. Freedom to connect,
it’s like every other right.
We’ve got to fight,
Or they’ll come and take it from us
in the middle of the night.

bq. So let’s finish with the words of Tim Bray,
Fat Pipe, Always On, Get Out of the Way.

bq. When we write to our congressman, what do we say?
(audience) Fat Pipe, Always On, Get Out of the Way.

bq. And when Whitaker says “Pay again” what do we say?
(audience) Fat Pipe, Always On, Get Out of the Way.

bq. And when BellSouth blocks our cities from doing WiFi?
(audience) Fat Pipe, Always On, Get Out of the Way.

bq. And when the telcos own your statehouse, what do you say?
(audience) Fat Pipe, Always On, Get Out of the Way.

bq. And when China blocks it bloggers, what do we say?
(audience) Fat Pipe, Always On, Get Out of the Way.

bq. And when the NSA spies on us what do we say?
(audience) Fat Pipe, Always On, Get Out of the Way.

bq. And when the FCC shuts down your ISP?
(audience) Fat Pipe, Always On, Get Out of the Way.

bq. Thank you. I hope to see you in Washington DC,
“April 3 and 4″:2.

[1]http://isen.com/blog/2006/01/my-oreilly-etel-talk.html
[2]http://freedom-to-connect.net/

Filed under: Network Neutrality, Policy

February 1, 2006 • 9:24 am 0

Free Commercial Wi-Fi

“Wi-Fi Net News reports”:1 that “MetroFi”:2, a Bay Area wireless ISP that covers Sunnyvale, Cupertino, and Santa Clara, recently switched to an all free model for wireless access (they used to charge monthly fees for access). Last year, they deployed a test network in Sunnyvale to test out free, advertiser supported wireless service, and found that it was a resounding success.

bq. CEO Chuck Haas said last week, “Most communications business — and MetroFi is no different — is a high fixed cost, low incremental cost business. Your denominator, how many subscribers you have to amortize that cost, is one of the big drivers of that business.” Haas said that his top three per-user costs were customer acquisition, support (mostly to do with billing), and Internet bandwidth. By removing the first two major factors, it’s cheaper for him to offer free service.

I have been saying this for years: billing is one of the most expensive parts of running an ISP. This is one of the reasons why NYCwireless offers free service. Without billing costs the network is much cheaper to operate.

Unfortunately, many people new to providing internet service (like restaurants, coffee shops, and hotels) just see dollar signs ($$$$). In a food establishment, internet service could cost less than $100 a month to provide, whereas creating and supporting a billing system might cost as much as 10 times that amount. How many more users would be needed to cover this additional expense? Its unlikely that any location will derive that much revenue from their users. Especially when you consider that a free network might draw as many as 10 times the number of users.

[1]http://wifinetnews.com/archives/006249.html
[2]http://www.metrofi.com/

Filed under: Community Wireless, News, NYCwireless, Urban Wireless

Twitter

Blog Stats

  • 710 hits
Follow

Get every new post delivered to your Inbox.