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October 30, 2006 • 11:30 am 0

PodCast: Michael Lewis on the Wireless Harlem Initiative

At our last “NYCwireless”:2 meeting, Michael Lewis, Executive Director of “Wireless Harlem”:1 gave a talk about the work he and his team have been doing to bring a form of community developed and supported ubiquitous wireless to Harlem.

His talk was fascinating, and we spoke at length afterwards in our Q&A about some of the more interesting details, especially about how New Yorkers really need to talk things into their own hands and build affordable, ubiquitous wireless themselves, since our administration doesn’t seem to be doing much to pursue this idea.

NYCwireless and Wireless Harlem are working together–we’re going to be helping bring both public space (read parks) Wi-Fi, and help with some of the community outreach. Its very exciting seeing how energized this part of New York City has become about wireless!

“Michael Lewis on the Wireless Harlem Initiative PodCast”:4 (m4a, 23MB)

“Michael’s presentation”:3 is also available (PDF).

[1]http://www.wirelessharlem.org
[2]http://www.nycwireless.net
[3]http://www.nycwireless.net/tiki-download_file.php?fileId=51
[4]http://wirelesscommunity.files.wordpress.com/2006/09/top.jpgwp-content/uploads/2006/10/20061025_wireless_harlem_nycwireless_presentation.m4a

Filed under: Community Wireless, Muniwireless, New York City, NYCwireless, Urban Wireless

October 22, 2006 • 1:22 pm 0

International Summit for Community Wireless Networks on May 18-20, 2007

NYCwireless regularly attends the NS4CWN event with lots of other community wireless networks the world over. This year promises to be even better, since we’ll be nearby Washington, D.C., and more of the policy wonks will be able to attend. I’ll be going down with some other NYCwireless members, so I hope to see you there!

bq. *NETWORK DEVELOPERS AND IMPLEMENTERS, POLICY EXPERTS, AND COMMUNITY ORGANIZERS WILL GATHER AT LOYOLA COLLEGE IN COLUMBIA, MARYLAND, MAY 18-20, 2007 TO EXPLORE THE FUTURE OF BROADBAND.*

bq. The Champaign-Urbana Community Wireless Network (CUWiN) and the Center for Community Informatics (CCI) will host the International Summit for Community Wireless Networks from May 18-20, 2007 at Loyola College in Columbia, Maryland.

bq. The summit is the largest gathering of wireless network developers, technology and policy experts, and community organizers working to build universal, low-cost broadband networks around the world. “We are proud to host an event that brings together technologists and activists committed to universal access to informatics,” said Marco Figueiredo, CCI Director.

bq. “The International Summit for Community Wireless Networks explores the opportunities and challenges facing the growing movement to build nonprofit, open-source, community and municipal broadband networks,” said Sascha Meinrath, co-founder and Executive Director of CUWiN. “This event showcases cutting-edge technologies and develops political strategies to increase digital inclusion.”

bq. Since the first National Summit for Community Wireless Networks in 2004, over 300 Community Internet and municipal broadband projects have sprung up in the United States alone. The summit will focus on how these networks can better serve their target populations, the policies needed to support broader deployment of community wireless systems, and the latest technological and software innovations.

bq. Presenters at previous summits have included Annie Collins of Fiber for Our Future, Mark Cooper of the Consumer Federation of America, Harold Feld of Media Access Project, Robert W. McChesney of Free Press, Matt Rantanen of Tribal Digital Village, Greg Richardson of Civitium LLC, Paul Smith of the Center for Neighborhood Technologies, Jim Snider of the New America Foundation, Dana Spiegel of NYCwireless, Esme Vos of Muniwireless.com and many other luminaries.

bq. “High-speed broadband access is the electricity of the 21st century, yet many rural and poorer urban communities are being left off the grid,” said Ben Scott, policy director of Free Press, the DC-based policy think-tank. “The innovators and organizers at the International Summit for Community Wireless Networks are blazing the trail to make broadband affordable and available to everyone.”

bq. For more information on the summit will soon be available at: “www.WirelessSummit.org”:1

[1]http://www.wirelesssummit.org

Filed under: Community Wireless, Event, NS4CWN, NYCwireless

October 18, 2006 • 8:00 am 0

Wednesday, Oct 18 @ 9pm on PBS: Moyers on America "The Net at Risk"

_From NYCwireless board member Joe Plotkin:_

Net Neutrality has been discussed vehemently and extensively on this list, so I urge everyone to watch Bill Moyer’s in-depth examination of this subject. It airs on Channel 13 tomorrow night Wed Oct 18th 9pm. It repeats 1:30am Saturday, October 21st (aka late Fri. night) and 2:00pm Sunday, October 22nd. Set your Tivo’s accordingly.

Additionally, some on this list have challenged the efficacy of the substantial work Bruce Kushnick and TeleTruth have done over the years. Bill Moyer’s team apparently disagrees, as they have made the editorial decision to feature Kushnick’s views and research.

Although I have not yet seen this episode, I believe this show will begin a long overdue, serious journalistic examination of the issues of network access and market power.

*Moyers on America Presents “The Net at Risk”.*
*PBS, (check local listings) Wednesday, October 18, 2006, 9PM, EDT*

Teletruth’s Bruce Kushnick and Tom Allibone are featured in “The New Digital Divide” segment.

Moyers on America presents a new, serious investigative analysis of the future of broadband, the Net and media–from municipalities trying to Wi-Fi or rewire their cities, to the large phone companies who claim that they ‘own the net’ or large media concerns who have the power to take control of the information and stories you see and hear.

The program has been divided into four segments.

h3. THE NET AT RISK

“http://www.pbs.org/moyers/moyersonamerica/net/neutrality.html”:1

The debate is hot, the language heady, the metaphors many. Op-ed pages alternately bemoan “The End of the Internet” or curse “Net Neutrality Nonsense.”

h3. THE NEW DIGITAL DIVIDE

“http://www.pbs.org/moyers/moyersonamerica/net/usworld.html”:2

Teletruth is featured. Check out the video–”In Korea and Japan customers are getting 100 Mbps services in both directions for about $40 bucks” – (That’s 100 times faster than America’s DSL services.)

“America’s screwed,” says Bruce Kushnick, a telecom analyst. “I mean, we basically are becoming technologically deficient. We’re close to the dinosaurs compared to what these other countries are going to be developing in the next couple years.”

Other sections include:

h3. COMMUNITY CONNECTIONS

“http://www.pbs.org/moyers/moyersonamerica/net/community.html”:3

“The Net @ Risk” takes viewers to Lafayette, Louisiana, where residents and officials took on their phone company, BellSouth, and their cable company, Cox Communications, and built their own high-speed fiber network after the firms refused to bring true broadband connections to their community.”

h3. BIG AND BIGGER MEDIA

“http://www.pbs.org/moyers/moyersonamerica/net/bigger.html”:4

“In 1984 the number of companies owning a controlling interest in America’s media was 50 – today that number is six. Critics of media consolidation say it has led to fewer and fewer perspectives being presented–and a marked decrease in local news coverage.”

Teletruth believes America’s digital future is at stake, not to mention the future of the U.S. economy. We are pleased to be part of this important investigative report.

More: Read “Teletruth’s series for Harvard’s Nieman Watchdog project”:5 on telecommunications, the Internet, wireless and broadband.

For more about Teletruth, read “http://www.teletruth.org”:6

[1]http://www.pbs.org/moyers/moyersonamerica/net/neutrality.html
[2]http://www.pbs.org/moyers/moyersonamerica/net/usworld.html
[3]http://www.pbs.org/moyers/moyersonamerica/net/community.html
[4]http://www.pbs.org/moyers/moyersonamerica/net/bigger.html
[5]http://www.niemanwatchdog.org/index.cfm?fuseaction=about.viewContributor&bioid=130
[6]http://www.teletruth.org

Filed under: Event, Network Neutrality, News, Policy

October 17, 2006 • 10:57 am 0

NYCwireless October Meeting: Oct 25th at 7:00pm

All are invited – please re-post everywhere!

*Please note earlier starting time for meeting*

h2. Location and Time

*Wednesday, October 25th, 2006 at 7:00pm*
*”Bway.net”:http://maps.google.com/?q=568%20Broadway,%20New%20York,%20NY*
*568 Broadway at Prince St, NE corner*
*Suite 404*
New York, NY 10012
(lobby sign-in required)

h2. Agenda

Michael Lewis, Executive Director of “*Wireless Harlem*”:2, will be speaking about the “*Wireless Harlem*”:2 initiative and the feasibility study the organization recently finished. “Wireless Harlem’s”:2 mission is to “close the digital divide in Harlem by making access to information ubiquitous for all of its residents.” Its objectives:
* Deploy scalable community-wide wireless broadband network
* Ensure everyone has access (residents, schools, business, visitors/tourists)
* Become innovation testing resource for new wireless broadband applications

“Wireless Harlem”:2 and “NYCwireless”:3 share many goals and objectives, and we are working together to help bring Wi-Fi to New York City.

“NYCwireless”:3 monthly meetings are held on the last Wednesday of every month. They are free, and open to all, RSVP not required.

“NYCwireless”:3 is a non-profit organization that advocates for, and enables the growth of free, public wireless networks.

[2]http://www.wirelessharlem.org
[3]http://www.nycwireless.net

Filed under: Community Wireless, Event, New York City, NYCwireless

October 7, 2006 • 3:30 pm 0

Survey on Wireless Hotspot Usage

NYCwireless board member (and Columbia University graduate student) Laura Forlano is “running a survey on wireless internet usage”:1 at cafes, parks, and other public places. While the survey is being run on NYC hotspots, information from across the country and across the world will help inform this research

The results of this survey will be used in her research and thesis to better understand how people use public Wi-Fi. NYCwireless will also be able to use guidance from this survey (through Laura’s excellent research) to build more and better hotspots.

In exchange for your participation, you will be entered into a drawing for an iPod, iTunes or a $300 donation to a charity of your choice. Your contact information will be used only for the purposes of the drawing.

Please take a few minutes to “complete the survey”:1, and post this survey information on other blogs.

[1]http://www.surveymonkey.com/s.asp?u=735302651119

Filed under: Community Wireless, NYCwireless

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