Archive for the Media category
Tuesday, Feb 26th, 2008
Categories: Media
Chris Anderson writes in Wired:
Free! Why $0.00 Is the Future of Business
[...] What Mead understood is that a psychological switch should flip as things head toward zero. Even though they may never become entirely free, as the price drops there is great advantage to be had in treating them as if they were free. Not too cheap to meter, as Atomic Energy Commission chief Lewis Strauss said in a different context, but too cheap to matter. Indeed, the history of technological innovation has been marked by people spotting such price and performance trends and getting ahead of them [...]
This is a fantastic read. It touches on this great point - to treat things whose costs are falling as if they were free. In our context, bandwidth is always going up, so why not treat a Wi-fi hotspot as if it were free?
This means not worrying about trying to give customers free minutes on your network, when the costs of auditing and managing that are not free (that has to use extra time of your staff who should be doing the paid work of your business!)
Tuesday, Feb 26th, 2008
Categories: Media
I mentioned iiNet and Tomizone earlier, but they deserves a separate post. From their business section:
“Your Hotspot location will be shown on our site so customers can come to you. You can add people to your Hotspot who can have free access - this means that they don’t have to pay to access your hotspot. A great bonus to a customer for buying your product.”
So, for business only?
It only works with Belkin wireless routers, which then need a firmware upgrade to play nice with Tomizone.
Tomizone only shows 4 hotspots for Sydney. I guess there are more Meraki access points around!
Monday, Feb 25th, 2008
Categories: Media
Since a couple of weeks, the City of Sydney is trialling free wireless internet in the city’s libraries:
“Visitors can now jump online at various locations thanks to a new Free Wireless Internet trial. Why not grab your laptop and drop in to Customs House, Glebe, Newtown, Ultimo or Haymarket Libraries and connect to the Internet free of charge.
Free Internet access using the library’s computers is also available. N.B: Please check the conditions of use.
Bring your own laptop and connect to the Internet free of charge!”
ZDnet has more on the story:
“With only a fortnight to go before the hotspots are switched off, a spokesperson has said that users won’t have long to wait before access becomes a permanent fixture.”
“The Council’s libraries manager added that the decision was made before the trial not to promote it heavily, as officials wanted to gauge the response of the public ahead of a permanent rollout.”
Read on at ZDnet.
Sunday, Feb 17th, 2008
Categories: Media
As if we didn’t know already, Mike Elgan tells us wi-fi wants to be free, about the Starbuck’s deal with AT&T:
“Wi-Fi used to be a resource for rent, now it’s the new toaster. This week, a kind of “tipping point” has been reached, and now — instead of being rented for a fee — Wi-Fi will increasingly be given away to motivate customers to buy other goods and services.”
The thing is, wi-fi is kind of hard to contain within four walls. In case of Starbucks, you’ll need a Starbucks card though, which would give you 2 hours of free wi-fi access a day. Can’t wait for them to introduce this over here (if ever). Since there’s dozens of them in the city, it would add a dozen of free access points (if you’re willing to get a Starbucks card)…
The coming years pressure will be on for all sorts of businesses to expand their service into offering free wi-fi: alternative coffee shops, food courts, department stores, shopping malls… A shopping mall for example could have one gateway Meraki connected to a single DSL line, and have Meraki repeaters dotted around the mall (and especially at coffee shops or their food court), with minimal investment. The cost for the internet connection should not be seen as an option, as a nice to have, but as a common utility, like electricity, water and gas. And given time, I think it will.
Now if only alternative ISPs would jump on this, like iiNet, and offer free wi-fi around town, branded with their logo, and I’d be happy to have it throttled (over time free wi-fi would compete on its available speed). To be fair, iiNet kind of already does something with Tomizone, giving its customers 100Mb per month on these wi-fi access points.
Nah, guess we’ll have to do it ourselves…
Sydney Morning Herald already picked up Meraki earlier in the year. But now they also pick up Free Sydney Wireless, and interviewed yours truly…
“Frustrated by the NSW Government’s stalled free wi-fi project, a group of Facebookers have decided to start their own.”
“Free Sydney Wireless’ next recruiting drive will be in March at Barcamp, an informal web developers’ get-together. “We will try to set up a wireless net at Barcamp using Merakis, in the hope that it spurs more people to install their own Meraki.”
Read all at SMH.com.au
If you want to get in touch, please register and leave a comment. Thanks!
If you’re interested in joining the fun (get a Meraki), head over to the Facebook group and look into the group buy post (but you do need a Facebook account - try to sort that out with an open forum or wiki soon).
Sascha Meinrath has posted a call for panels for the 2008 IS4CWN:
CALL FOR PANELS — Due March 31, 2008
International Summit for Community Wireless Networks
May 28-30, 2008, Washington, DC
Send panel proposals and questions to: summit@chambana.net
Since the first National Summit for Community Wireless Networks in 2004, hundreds of community Internet and municipal broadband initiatives have sprung up around the globe. Internet access is increasingly important to all facets of civil society, but many communities are being left out of this communications revolution. “High-speed broadband access is the electricity of the 21st century, yet many rural and poorer urban communities are being left off the grid,” says Ben Scott, policy director of Free Press, a 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.”
The 2008 summit will be co-hosted by the world’s largest general scientific society, the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS), and continue its tradition of featuring wireless leaders, innovators, activists, and community networking visionaries from around the globe.
The Summit focuses on how wireless 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 in the field. “Wireless networking is about far more than Internet connectivity,” states Sascha Meinrath, Summit Director. “It’s about building next-generation multi-media services for communities, fostering social and economic justice, and facilitating a vibrant arts and cultural scene.”
We invite your panel proposals and participation in this year’s International Summit for Community Wireless Networks to discuss and exchange ideas on how to make universal broadband access a reality. More information will be available soon at: www.wirelesssummit.org.
Anyone any ideas? Call for papers.
ZDNet Australia’s Jo Best asks herself “There’s no such thing as a free lunch, so the old adage goes — but is there such a thing as free Wi-Fi?”, comparing FON to Meraki:
Fon has a slightly different take. Like Meraki, it sells routers to encourage users to pass on their Wi-Fi, but there’s no mesh involved. Fon users — so-called Foneros — offer to make their Wi-Fi available to others. Passers-by in need of a hotspot can buy some time on Foneros’ connections much like they would in a Starbucks or an airport, albeit a bit cheaper. The Fonero and Fon itself then get to split the revenue between them.
Read on at ZDNet.com.au.
Thursday, Jan 10th, 2008
Categories: Media
Bruce Schneier, security guru, talks about his own open wifi network at home in this Wired article:
“To me, it’s basic politeness. Providing internet access to guests is kind of like providing heat and electricity, or a hot cup of tea. But to some observers, it’s both wrong and dangerous.
…
Similarly, I appreciate an open network when I am otherwise without bandwidth. If someone were using my network to the point that it affected my own traffic or if some neighbor kid was dinking around, I might want to do something about it; but as long as we’re all polite, why should this concern me? Pay it forward, I say.
…
In my opinion, securing my wireless network isn’t worth it. And I appreciate everyone else who keeps an open wireless network. You all make the world a better place.”
He also talks about legal implications, when people would abuse your connection.
Follow the discussion on Digg and SlashDot.
Sydney Morning Herald journalist Nick Galvin peeps into the future and discusses ten things he thinks will change our future, including Mark Pesce’s Mob Rules, and Meraki:
“Put several Merakis together in a neighbourhood and they will instantly form a “mesh” network, giving internet access to anyone in the area. These ‘guerilla’ networks are beginning to spring up in cities around the world, driven by people for whom internet access is a social-equity issue.”
Another thing I’m looking forward to is a Chumby…
Read on SMH.com.au.
Sunday, Nov 25th, 2007
Categories: Media
NSW is about to roll out a free Wifi service… Oh wait, that was last years’ news. Did Unwired get picked for the Sydney free Wifi? Nope, as apparently “Complexity delays free Sydney wireless network“. Unwired just introduced their pre-paid plan, which is a nice idea but pretty slow (320k), limited and expensive (starting at 150Mb over 7 days for $10 AUD). If they were to provide the free Wifi, how would that fit in with their business plan? Where does Unwired actually fit into Channel 7’s business plan?
It is pretty easy though, just pick up a Meraki for 49 USD (+ shipping), and hook it up. Then your neighbor does the same. You’ve got a network. Although a business district does need a decent Wifi provider of course, as community Wifi doesn’t provide any warranties for service. And the free Wifi network would seem to be only covering the CBD’s, so that leaves the regular folk out in the cold. So, yes, in the end, we need to do it ourselves.