MuniWireless

Consumer Guide excerpt: Clearwire brings flexible price plans to broadband services

Paul Kapustka — Fri, 10 Jul 2009 00:04:32 +0000

Editor’s Note: The following post is an excerpt from our new report, Goin’ Mobile: How WiMax Could Change the Consumer Broadband Experience. In this excerpt we talk about how flexible, innovative pricing schemes from main provider Clearwire may help drive the adoption of WiMax services by consumers. The report, which updates our previous consumer guide with the latest in market launch information from Clearwire’s Atlanta, Las Vegas and Portland markets, is available for purchase from our website for $4.95.

WIMAX PRICING, MARKETS AND ROAMING

If there is any other hallmark that differentiates WiMax pricing, it is Clearwire’s long list of flexible options, which include choices of different levels of service speed as well as “bundling” options that offer lower prices when consumers combine two services, such as a home service and a mobile service.

While writing about Clearwire service pricing is an inexact science (since the company has rapidly repriced and reduced prices on options in the first six months of 2009 alone) its entry-level price for basic home WiMax service has remained steady at $20 a month. Its fastest home-service option, which offers 6 Mbps download speeds, was priced at $40 per month as of the writing of this report. An unlimited-usage mobile service option was priced at $50 per month, with promised download speeds of 4 Mbps. And a combination of unlimited home and mobile services — say a home modem and a USB card tied to the same bill — was priced at $65 per month.

Another difference between Clearwire’s pricing and that of other service providers is the option to pay month-by-month, without any long-term contract or early termination fees. The company also offers a “day pass” for $10 that allows users to test the service before committing to longer contracts. In June 2009 Clearwire started offering more aggressive discounts for customers who signed longer contracts, often waiving the standard introductory connection fees or lowering monthly prices for a short period of time. Clearwire executives said in May that they expect more discounts on services and devices later in 2009, as partners such as Intel and laptop manufacturers start their WiMax marketing campaigns.

Pricing for Sprint’s hybrid 3G/4G card in June 2009 was $79.99 for the card and $79.99 per month for the service, which covers both WiMax and 3G usage. Sprint has said that it expects to offer the card and service in every market Clearwire launches in 2009, typically a few months after Clearwire starts offering service. (A longer list of recent Clearwire pricing packages is appended to the end of this report.)

For nationwide WiMax roaming, consumers will likely have to wait until Clearwire builds out more markets, or until expected partnerships ensure roaming between disparate WiMax provider networks. Though Clearwire has enough licensed spectrum to eventually provide WiMax services in most of the country’s main population areas — which would then support nationwide roaming just like cellular services do today — the company says that the bigger base of users may be those looking for roaming around the neighborhood, instead of around the nation.

“We think there is a big underserved market below the professional 3G users,” says Atish Gude, Clearwire’s senior vice president and chief marketing officer. “The main utility will be having the ‘real’ Internet with you wherever you go.”

In Goin’ Mobile: How WiMax Could Change the Consumer Broadband Experience, Sidecut Reports looks in detail at the recent market launches of Clearwire’s “Clear” WiMax services in Portland, Ore., Atlanta and Las Vegas, and how WiMax’s combination of speed, mobility, and innovative pricing might satisfy the growing consumer demand for an always-on Internet experience.

Prepared in an easy-to-read style with deep background material for those who may not have understood WiMax before, the report provides a thorough explanation of the technology, devices, applications and consumer use of the country’s newest form of wireless broadband access service. Order your report now!

New York MTA wants wireless broadband in trains and stations

Esme Vos — Thu, 09 Jul 2009 05:31:06 +0000

The New York MTA and Long Island Rail Road have issued a Request for Expressions of Interest regarding the deployment of wireless broadband in trains and stations. Responses are due on 1 September 2009. Public transport companies are increasingly providing wireless broadband (mostly Wi-Fi) to passengers, often for free, to entice people away from their cars and other transportation firms.

Here’s an excerpt from the RFEI:

“The New York Metropolitan Transportation Authority (“MTA”), together with the Long Island Rail Road (“LIRR”) and Metro-North Commuter Railroad (“Metro-North”, and together with LIRR, the “Railroads”), are considering the deployment of wireless broadband services on the Railroads’ trains and in the Railroads’ stations. This RFEI is being issued to solicit expressions of interest from providers of such services.”

“LIRR operates between New York City and Long Island and within Long Island. Metro-North operates between New York City and the northern suburban counties of Westchester, Putnam and Dutchess; from the City through the southern portion of the State of Connecticut; through an arrangement with New Jersey Transit, the Port Jervis and Pascack Valley commuter rail services to Orange and Rockland Counties; and within such counties and the State of Connecticut. LIRR and Metro-North are, respectively, the largest and second largest commuter railroad services in the nation and operate every day of the year, although frequency of service varies by route, day of the week and time of
day.”

. . . .

“The RFEI will provide MTA and the Railroads the opportunity to review different technologies and solutions and to evaluate different business cases. As an option, one or both of the Railroads may decide to permit a technical trial of one or more technical solutions at no cost to the Railroads. After the Railroads review the responses to the RFEI (and the results of technical trials, if any), a decision will be made whether to proceed with a wide scale on-train and/or station wireless broadband implementation pursuant to a subsequent request for proposals (“RFP”).”

“Given that MTA and the Railroads are at a relatively early stage in our consideration of whether to proceed to implementation of a wireless broadband network as described in this RFEI, we recognize that Respondents may not be willing to spend the time and money necessary to develop detailed responses to all of the questions and specific requests for information that are set forth below.
However, the better the quality of the responses we receive, including specific consideration of the Railroads’ business, policy and operating environments, the better we will be able to (a) measure the interest of particular Respondents and (b) determine whether and how to proceed.”

Request for Expressions of Interest in Broadband Wireless on Trains and in Stations

NTIA seeks volunteers to evaluate broadband grant applications

Esme Vos — Wed, 08 Jul 2009 23:17:53 +0000

If you already have too much money, or are simply idle this summer and unusually patriotic, do consider volunteering to review broadband stimulus grant applications because the NTIA is not willing to pay any money at all for this extremely important task.

I find the NTIA’s refusal to pay for these services an absolute insult to people who have amassed a tremendous amount of expertise in this field. Perhaps the NTIA is counting on a vast army of unemployed consultants to do this work for free. I know what you’re thinking: “Yes, I would like to help my country but perhaps my country should also value my services enough and pay for them.” Actually the NTIA is simply following the trendy thing to do these days among enterprises that don’t want to pay for services - it’s called “crowdsourcing”. Linked In (the social network) recently asked their members to translate - for free - Linked In’s pages from English into various languages. Not surprisingly, translators around the world were insulted. Facebook has tried crowdsourcing, too. The message is the same: they’re cheap.

Here’s the problem with the NTIA’s something-for-nothing strategy: How are you going to find people who are truly qualified and have the requisite skills and experience if you are not going to pay them? How will you guarantee they aren’t approving projects that favor one vendor’s equipment and products over the others? Sure, the NTIA says it will look for conflicts of interest, but the ultimate conflict of interest is someone who is working for free, but quietly getting paid under the table by a vendor (or less obviously, seeking favors from a vendor) precisely because he or she isn’t being compensated at all by the NTIA and needs to pay a mortgage and put food on the table!

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Here’s the announcement (download the entire Call for Broadband Grant Reviewers):

The National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) of the U.S. Department of Commerce is soliciting volunteers to serve as panelists to evaluate grant proposals for the $4.7 billion Broadband Technology Opportunities Program (BTOP), an important part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009. NTIA is accepting applications for its first round of BTOP grants from July 14, 2009 until August 14, 2009, and will conduct panel reviews through at least the end of September, 2009. As a reviewer, your evaluations will be an important factor considered by NTIA in determining whether to award grant funding. To be considered as a reviewer you must have significant expertise and experience in at least one of the following areas: 1) the design, funding, construction, and operation of broadband networks or public computer centers; 2) broadband-related outreach, training, or education; and 3) innovative programs to increase the demand for broadband services. In addition you must agree to comply with Department of Commerce policies on conflict of interest and confidentiality.

We are committed to ensuring that reviewers come from diverse backgrounds and areasof the United States. Please feel free to circulate this “Call for Reviewers” to other individuals or organizations that may be sources of qualified reviewers. To apply to be a panel reviewer for BTOP, please email a resume containing the information below to BTOPReviewers@ntia.doc.gov:

• Name
• Residence (city and state)
• Email/phone number
• Employer
• Position/Title
• Years and types of experience and positions in fields related to BTOP activities

NTIA will examine and approve reviewer applications on a first-come, first-served basis. Approved reviewers will be contacted to schedule participation in a webinar orientation session and teleconference panel reviews. Although there will be no direct reimbursement for your time and expertise, you may be assured that you will be making a significant contribution to enhancing broadband services throughout the United States. We appreciate the valuable contribution you will be making to the success of BTOP and look forward to working with you as a reviewer. If you have questions, please send them by email to: BTOPReviewers@ntia.doc.gov. For additional information, please see http://www.broadbandusa.gov/

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*Attention vendors and consultants! Get included in the Muniwireless Vendor Directory which appears online and in the upcoming guide, How To Get a Broadband Stimulus Grant. Please send an email to me.

*Join the MuniWireless / Muni WiMAX Linked In Group for networking and discussions.

*Sign up for the MuniWireless / WiMAX newsletter.

*Download the latest list of US cities and counties with WiFi

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iPhone plus camera plus pothole: Boston brings citizen complaints to the modern age

Esme Vos — Mon, 06 Jul 2009 23:29:24 +0000

This is one application I’ve been waiting for and it will be available in Boston very soon. An iPhone application called Citizen Connect will let iPhone owners take photos of potholes, graffiti, broken street lights, crumbling sidewalks, anything that’s a nuisance, and send them to City Hall so the municipality can fix them.

I hope other cities launch a similar application. In San Francisco, there are enough potholes and broken sidewalks to fix, and filthy streets to clean. Now the question is how quickly cities will be able to fix these things. With budget cuts in California (the state is issuing IOUs and has had its debt rating cut to BBB), applications like this will only fuel more anger and cynicism. But I think it’s about time!

Read more from the Boston Globe: Municipal complaint? There’s an app for that

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*Attention vendors and consultants! Get included in the Muniwireless Vendor Directory which appears online and in the upcoming guide, How To Get a Broadband Stimulus Grant. Please send an email to me.

*Join the MuniWireless / Muni WiMAX Linked In Group for networking and discussions.

*Sign up for the MuniWireless / WiMAX newsletter.

*Download the latest list of US cities and counties with WiFi

*Advertise on Muniwireless.com. Email us for current advertising rates.

Peekskill, NY gets federal funds for muni Wi-Fi network

Esme Vos — Mon, 06 Jul 2009 22:00:40 +0000

Peekskill, NY (pop. 25,000) is getting a $300,000 grant from the federal government for a Wi-Fi network in the city. The municipality hopes that the network will assist city employees working in the field. The idea is to enable city employees to do their work anywhere in the city with laptops and smartphones. Peekskill should thank U.S. Sen. Charles Schumer, D-N.Y., who helped get funding for the network and called it a “major economic development tool” for the city, which is hoping to get another $300,000 for the network’s expansion.

Many municipalities and counties in the US are planning to apply for grants under the broadband stimulus package to deploy wired and wireless networks. Rural areas have been given top priority under the NTIA and RUS guidelines which came out last week. I am writing a How to Get a Grant guide to help those communities.

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*Attention vendors and consultants! Get included in the Muniwireless Vendor Directory which appears online and in the upcoming guide, How To Get a Broadband Stimulus Grant. Please email me - the guide will be released in a few days.

*Join the MuniWireless / Muni WiMAX Linked In Group for networking and discussions.

*Sign up for the MuniWireless / WiMAX newsletter.

*Download the latest list of US cities and counties with WiFi

*Advertise on Muniwireless.com. Email us for current advertising rates.

Tour de France Wi-Fi: Team Columbia bus allows cyclists to tweet

Esme Vos — Mon, 06 Jul 2009 21:46:10 +0000

It’s July and that means the Tour de France! With so many riders on Twitter, how do they update their Twitter feeds regularly? Well, Team Columbia-High Road seems to have no problem as they have Wi-Fi on their bus. Check out this photo posted by Michael Rogers (@mickrogers). Teammate Mark Cavendish has won the last 2 stages (the 2nd stage from Monaco to Brignoles and stage 3 from Marseille to Le Grand-Motte). But it’s still early in the Tour and anything can happen. Tomorrow is the team time trial in Montpellier.

Venice, Italy launches muni Wi-Fi network

Esme Vos — Mon, 06 Jul 2009 15:24:51 +0000

Going Venice, Italy this summer? Don’t forget to check out the new citywide Wi-Fi service. The city claims to have the largest Wi-Fi network in Europe and one of the fastest, too. Access is free to residents of the city, but tourists will have to pay 5 EUR per day through the Venice Connect website. The city also plans to use the network for government applications, for example, traffic management and public safety. At present, the network covers 7 kilometers along the Grand Canal and many piazzas where tourists congregate, but there are plans to provide Wi-Fi access at Marco Polo International Airport as well.

In an interesting twist to Wi-Fi launch ceremonies, the city’s “ribbon cutting” event was held on a boat moving through the Grand Canal to show that users can connect to the Internet while cruising around the city in a vaporetto. I am sure visitors will appreciate the existence of Wi-Fi everywhere when they’re lost and need to find their hotel or a restaurant on their iPhones. The 5 EUR charge is far less than what many European providers charge per day in other cities (see my article: Travelers shocked by high Wi-Fi prices in Europe).

Although the European Union has forced mobile operators to lower their SMS and voice roaming rates starting 1 July 2009, data roaming rates remain high. Anyone who travels a lot knows the horrors of using a cellular connection to browse web pages or download email. The cry of anguish when one finds a mobile phone bill the size of a monthly mortgage payment upon returning home from holiday is one of the few universal experiences shared by travelers around the world. That’s why people love Wi-Fi and look for it wherever they go. It’s faster, too despite the endless optimistic press releases pumped out by the HSPA+ crowd (this is assuming your city even has HSPA).

Finally, to make things fun, Venice held an interactive digital Wi-Fi treasure hunt called “Whaiwhai”, where participants used mobile Wi-Fi devices to look for clues that guided them to various locations. On 3 July 2009, 2,679 users connected to the network, downloaded 20 gigabytes and uploaded 6 gigabytes of information (data from Tropos Networks, which provided equipment for the network).

Vitrociset, a Rome-based systems integrator, designed and installed the network; Venis Spa, a local ICT management and development company, will operate and maintain network operations on behalf of the City.

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Venice, Italy: free broadband access for newborns

Mapplr’s favorite hotels in Venice

Hotel Sant’Elena: luxury in a former Venetian convent

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*Attention vendors and consultants! Get included in the Muniwireless Vendor Directory which appears online and in the upcoming guide, How To Get a Broadband Stimulus Grant. Please send an email to esme[at]muniwireless.com.

*Join the MuniWireless / Muni WiMAX Linked In Group for networking and discussions.

*Sign up for the MuniWireless / WiMAX newsletter.

*Download the latest list of US cities and counties with WiFi

*Advertise on Muniwireless.com. Email us for current advertising rates.

Broadband stimulus grant guidelines released

Esme Vos — Thu, 02 Jul 2009 16:37:20 +0000

The NTIA and RUS have released the guidelines they will be using to evaluate grant applications. I have not read the entire 121-page document, but I will do so and post my analysis here. I am also writing a How to Get a Grant guide over the next week. The agencies are taking applications starting 14 July 2009. So get those pencils ready!

Download the 121-page document from the Broadbandusa website.

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Note to vendors, consultants and systems integrators: if you want to advertise and be included in the Vendor directory of the How to Get a Grant Guide (and in the online vendor directory), email me.

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*Join the MuniWireless / Muni WiMAX Linked In Group for networking and discussions.

*Sign up for the MuniWireless / WiMAX newsletter.

*Download the latest list of US cities and counties with WiFi

*Advertise on Muniwireless.com. Email us for current advertising rates.

European roaming charges reduced as of 1 July 2009

Esme Vos — Wed, 01 Jul 2009 16:26:45 +0000

Europeans going on holiday this summer will get a very pleasant surprise: lower roaming charges. Viviane Reding, EU telecoms commissioner, is happy to announce that that roaming rip-off is now coming to an end.

Beginning 1 July 2009, the new roaming charges are:

€0.11 for sending a text message;
up to €0.39 for making a call;
up to €0.15 for receiving a call from another country.

To prevent “bill shocks”, once a customer’s bill reaches 50 EUR, the customer will be warned via SMS if he wants to exceed the cap. From now on, people will be warned before they incur hundreds of Euros in mobile phone charges.

As for data roaming, the EU has imposed a wholesale cap of €1 per megabyte, going down to €0.80 in 2010 and €0.50 in 2011. These are the prices that the carriers charge one another, not the prices they charge the end user.

Although the telecom operators fought hard against the new regulations, Reding and the European Parliament continued pressing for lower rates, to the benefit of mobile users throughout the EU.

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*Attention vendors and consultants! Get included in the Muniwireless Vendor Directory which appears online and in the upcoming guide, How To Get a Broadband Stimulus Grant. Please send an email to esme[at]muniwireless.com.

*Join the MuniWireless / Muni WiMAX Linked In Group for networking and discussions.

*Sign up for the MuniWireless / WiMAX newsletter.

*Download the latest list of US cities and counties with WiFi

*Advertise on Muniwireless.com. Email us for current advertising rates.

Novarum tests 3G in 13 US cities: AT&T has fastest upload speed

Esme Vos — Wed, 01 Jul 2009 05:17:39 +0000

Novarum tested major 3G services in 13 American cities, including New York, San Francisco, and Chicago, for PC World. The test results reveal that “Verizon’s service showed a combination of speed and reliability, Sprint’s results lent credence to its ‘most dependable’ claim, and AT&T’s network showed fast upload speeds in most cities.” Surprisingly, the number of bars on your phone do not indicate the quality of the connection. Read the PC World article, A Day in the Life of 3G.

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*Attention vendors and consultants! Get included in the Muniwireless Vendor Directory which appears online and in the upcoming guide, How To Get a Broadband Stimulus Grant. Please send an email to esme[at]muniwireless.com.

*Join the MuniWireless / Muni WiMAX Linked In Group for networking and discussions.

*Sign up for the MuniWireless / WiMAX newsletter.

*Download the latest list of US cities and counties with WiFi

*Advertise on Muniwireless.com. Email us for current advertising rates.