In return, CBS gets ad impressions, tons of them. Visitors to the region will be greeted with a sponsored homepage with hyperlocal news and information for people within the specified area.

CBS Outdoor Chairman and CEO, Wally Kelly, explains that this is just one example of how CBS is dedicated to turning Outdoor assets into next-generation interactive platforms.
Via [centernetworks.com]

Meraki, Google funded start up, claims it can cover the city with Wi-Fi for a fraction of the current plan’s costs, won’t require any commitment from the city, and they will use hardware that is more reliable than Earthlink. So far the company has set up internet access points across the city that have been hit by approximately 7000 different machines. They’re now hoping to expand their coverage to the rest of the city.

Rather than following Earthlink’s expensive and flawed system of placing access points on light poles, Meraki relies on volunteers who place transmitters in their windows and allow neighbors to piggy back on the service, in fact some people are actually providing access to their own DSL connections.

All of the kinks aren’t worked out of the system, but it looks as if Meraki’s neighborly approach may be the solution to San Francisco’s internet woes.
Via [theregister.co.uk]

EarthLink has raised concerns about the citywide Wi-Fi agreements they have signed and are no longer willing to add new buildouts until they can insure the deal will be profitable.

So, it appears as if the city of San Francisco has worked up a deal that the city is content with but the Wi-Fi provider is unable to deliver.
Via [infoworld.com]

The Whisher beta software is available for download and can operate with most, if not all, Wi-Fi routers or access points. Users must register their Wi-Fi network and to do so, they would need to disclose its name, physical address, and WEP or WPA encryption key (Whisher demands that networks be encrypted), which will go to a database containing information of other Whisher members’ networks. Through the database, Whisher members can locate and log on to each other’s networks for free but they need not worry that other members will see their key since this is only known by the software. Beware, however, of the possibility of network slowdown because controlling the volume of of wireless bandwidth used by Whisher members is impossible.

FON is another option. Unlike Whisher, sharing WiFi through FON is not for free — you need to buy the La Fonera router, which is sold for $40 or half the price if referred by existing FON members — but you can limit the amount of bandwidth use. Plus, you may earn a few bucks since FON allows users to impose a $3 daily fee or $10 for five days for network use, though you can only get less than half of that, after deducting FON’s share and Paypal’s fee, on top of surrendering your free access to other FON networks.

If security is of high importance to you, then WeFi may not be your best choice. The software, which is in beta, works on non-encrypted networks, and at present, with Windows XP only.
Via [wi-fiplanet.com]

The non-profit group, OpenCape Corp was started with about $300,000 in donations from local colleges, communities and development agencies. The group is already taking steps toward its goal by installing point to point radios along the Cape and neighboring Martha’s Vineyard and Nantucket. These radios will form the backbone of the proposed wireless network.

OpenCape currently estimates that the commercial transport net will cost about $2 million to build while the public net will hit the $3 million mark. The commercial side is expected to generate enough revenue that it will pay for the operational costs of both sides.
Via [techworld.com]