Partners, technology and tenants form muni-Wi-Fi triumvirate

There isn't a one-size-fits-all business model for muni-Wi-Fi networks, but there are a few critical elements that are an absolute requirement. This was the overriding theme at the North American Wireless Cities Summit, held in Vancouver earlier this week. Many speakers talked about the need to identify the key drivers behind the municipal wireless network, and then build it to specifically support those applications and services. Angela Singhal Whiteford, director of municipal solutions at Nortel Networks Corp., noted that municipalities have to pick the right partners, find anchor tenants and match the technology to the types of services and applications the city plans to offer. With respect to picking partners, she stressed the importance of letting each partner in the network do what they do best. ISPs are good at service provision, while cities can determine what applications are best to deploy to meet their needs. Another aspect Singhal Whiteford highlighted was the need to make sure applications work before they are deployed. On the technology front, she said that different technologies - Wi-Fi, WiMAX or wired gear - offer different benefits and the types of applications to be deployed should play a part in determining what network technologies will be implemented. But at the end of the day, Singhal Whiteford added, all of the various technologies will likely be deployed in a municipal broadband network. These two elements - partners and technology - are critical, but she stressed the importance of anchor tenants during her presentation. "Cities need to step up and either be anchor tenants or facilitate the bringing on of anchor tenants," she said. And if the municipality opts for a public-private sector partnership to build the network and deploy services, then the city has to become an anchor tenant, Singhal Whiteford added. While the overall objectives of the network and determining how they will affect technology and partner choice appear straightforward, this wasn't always the case for municipal wireless. In some centres, bridging the digital divide - many at the conference referred to this as the digital inclusion effort - was of paramount importance in the not-so-distant past. However, this changed recently with most large implementations shifting to revenue-generating opportunities. Craig Settles, CEO of Successful.com and chair of the conference, recalled a prediction he made at a similar conference in January where he said that the middle of this year would prove to be a pivotal time in determining the viability of the various muni-Wi-Fi business models. It's clear, he added, that projects based on providing broadband to the under-served and under privileged haven't proven good. In an interview after her presentation, Singhal Whiteford said the fact that discussion around municipal wireless has evolved to be more focused on revenue generating opportunities rather than the social-good aspect of digital inclusion does mark a positive step. "If focusing on a public private partnership model, not not-for-profit, they're out there to make money," she said.But she maintains the digital inclusion effort is still important and while it shouldn't be the primary driver behind municipal broadband, it should be a consideration in these projects. She referenced comments made by Settles earlier in the day in relation to the disadvantaged being transformed from a drain on the economy to being productive. "By allowing them to have Internet services or the ability to start up their own home-based businesses, they go to either a neutral setting or actually contributing to the economy and I think that's important," she stressed.

Partners, technology and tenants form muni-Wi-Fi triumvirate

News | 06/21/2007 5:35 pm EDT

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