Will WiFi Be the Straw that Broke The Internet Camel's Back?
Philadelphia announces it's plans to move forward with a city-wide wifi network provided my Earthlink (based in Atlanta). Here is the kicker...almost half the homes in Philadelphia have NO internet access. Earthlink plans to offer low income plans, budget plans with prices as low as $10 per month for access (not certain yet what the speed would be) and the majority of residents paying $20. Earthlink plans on this being a WiFi backbone that other internet access providers can sell access to as well. It seems their goal is not to take over the city, but to break up the growing monopolies of cable and DSL internet. In these "speedworthy surfing seas" however, the speeds they will be able to offer remains to be seen. But I for one am all for it, it will allow a whole new group of folks who never could access the internet, to use it now for working at home, schooling, entertainment, news updates, and more! With Google offering to provide San Francisco with a Free WiFi network, and free access, it seems that those gaps in internet access around the country will soon be filling up! What do you think this means for dial up ?