S.F. Nears WiFi Deal

Contract negotiations over a citywide wireless network in San Francisco is set to wrap up soon, according Chris Vein, who heads the city’s technology office.

The city has already selected the joint venture of Google and Earthlink for the multi-million-dollar project. Under the deal, Earthlink will build and manage the 50-square-mile network, which will hold 1,500 radio transmitters from Tropos Networks, while Google will buy bandwidth from Earthlink and provide a free wireless service to residents. The network promises to deliver 300 kilobits per second to users of the free service but can provide up to 1 megabit per second connection for a fee of $20 per month.

The city’s board of supervisors, Vein said, is likely to start its review of the contract by January. If the contract is approved, Earthlink is expected to begin installing its equipment next year.
Via [mercurynews.com]

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