Post in SofC - Broadband

Mar 24 19:51 UTC

Here's an article from the March 22 NYT, which explains why these
Wi-Fi initiatives in other cities have been troubled.

Basically, "............   momentum has sputtered to a standstill,
tripped up by unrealistic ambitions and technological glitches. The
conclusion that such ventures would not be profitable led to sudden
withdrawals by service providers like EarthLink, the Internet company
that had effectively cornered the market on the efforts by the larger
cities."

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/22/us/22wireless.html?_r=1&scp=1&sq=community+internet+service&st=nyt&oref=slogin

Whether or not cities should step in to make the considerable
investment required  to either build or subsidize a wi-fi  system is
going to be a contentious issue.

I attended the first two of the Mayor's town hall meetings, and my
impression is that he has people who are on top of the issue, but
they seem to be holding back to see how this issue sorts out
nationally. And, given the uncertainties, I think that's a prudent
course.