Verizon deal lets Philadelphia move with wireless plan
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MacCentral - The city of Philadelphia has reached an agreement with Verizon Communications Inc. that will let the municipal government deploy a citywide Wi-Fi network, but a carrier-backed bill that would let incumbent carriers block such projects has been signed into law by Pennsylvania's governor.
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The deal, valued at $35 billion, will create a large wireless service provider to compete with wireless rivals Cingular and Verizon.
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Verizon Wireless has agreed to buy wireless spectrum licenses covering 23 US markets from bankrupt NextWave Telecom Inc. for $3 billion in a deal that would boost Verizon&#39;s capacity in several major markets.
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NEW YORK - Coming soon could be a wireless broadband world in which consumers get to pick any smartphone or other device and load any software on it - not have to take what the wireless carrier wants to sell.
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(InfoWorld) - The sun came out for EarthLink's Philadelphia Wi-Fi network on Thursday even as prospects forÂ its San Francisco projectÂ remain shrouded in fog. Wireless Philadelphia, a nonprofit group formed by the city of Philadelphia, has approved the 15-square-mile Wi-Fi test network EarthLink built, opening the door for the operator to finish building out a 135-square-mile network covering the city. The approval comes just a month afterÂ EarthLink announced it would scale back its city Wi-Fi initiative, focusing on existing and large cities for the rest of the year. The company has seven or eight cities under contract now and is negotiating with five more, Vice President of Product Strategy and Marketing Cole Reinwand said last week. It decided to stagger its Wi-Fi expansion to conserve resources, he said. Residents can already use the 15-square-mile network in Philadelphia. The full network is expected to be complete in the third quarter. EarthLink is financing, building, and managing the network and will share revenue with Wireless Philadelphia, which will offer cut-rate access for low-income people. For six months, customers of a 1MbpsÂ service will pay an introductory rate of $6.95 per month, which bumps up to $19.95 thereafter. A faster 3Mbps service is available for $9.95 for the first six months and $21.95 after that. City parks will have free access, and low-income residents can sign up for service at $9.95 per month, before promotions. Customers can also pay for service on an hourly, daily or three-day basis. The Philadelphia Wi-Fi network is notable because when announced, it set off a storm of controversy that resulted in a Pennsylvania law requiring municipalities to receive approval from incumbent telecommunications operators before building Wi-Fi networks. The law was created after incumbents complained that by financing Wi-Fi networks, cities were building networks that would compete with their businesses. The San Francisco project, which has drawn attention partly because of Google's planned involvement as provider of a free citywide service, has run into fierce opposition from activists as well as some local elected officials. The proposed contract is scheduled for a vote by the city and county's board of supervisors in July.
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For about $10 million, city officials believe they can turn all 135 square miles of Philadelphia into the world's largest wireless Internet hot spot.
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By Tom Sowa, The Spokesman-Review, Spokane, Wash.  Mar. 2--Verizon Wireless subscribers in Spokane can now watch cable TV programming on their cell phones.
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Households in Newtown, Yardley and Doylestown will be among the first in the region to have access to new high-speed Internet services from Verizon.
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Verizon Wireless on Monday plans to make its wireless broadband service available in 11 more cities, an expansion the carrier claims will dwarf its competitors.
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Philadelphia has finished testing its wireless Internet project, setting the stage for America's biggest citywide Wi-Fi network that will also offer access to low-income households, officials said on Thursday.
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Verizon Wireless this week said its 3G service will be available in 14 US markets and 20 airports on September 27. Next Monday, it will also be offered in Atlanta; Austin, Texas; Baltimore; Kansas City, Missouri
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Verizon Wireless introduced an unlimited calling plan Tuesday with no roaming or long-distance fees for $99.99 a month, an offer that could spark a price war among carriers.
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Philadelphia expanded free outdoor wireless Internet access on Tuesday as part of a multimillion-dollar plan to connect the entire city by early 2006.
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Philadelphia has finished testing  its wireless Internet project, setting the stage for America&#39;s  biggest citywide Wi-Fi network that will also offer access to  low-income households, officials said on Thursday.
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Boston's plan to blanket the city with wireless Internet connections is set to pick up speed this month as companies jockey to play a role and a pilot WiFi project gets underway in a square-mile area of the Grove Hall neighborhood.
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TRENTON, NJ - Verizon Wireless is buying wireless-spectrum licenses covering 23 US markets from bankrupt NextWave Telecom Inc. for $3 billion.
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Philadelphia may spread the joy of wireless Internet access to its citizens.