Google, EarthLink Near Deal For S.F. Wi-Fi
- by Wendy Davis @wendyndavis, January 4, 2007
In April, the city selected Google and EarthLink to offer free municipal Wi-Fi, but the contract has yet to be finalized. Dow Jones' MarketWatch reported this week that the deal was likely to be signed soon.
The main hold-up, according to a recent report in the San Francisco Chronicle, involves pricing. Initial reports last year had Google and Earthlink providing two tiers of service in San Francisco: a $20-a-month plan at 1 Mpbs and a free ad-supported service at the slower rate of 300 kpbs. But the Chronicle recently reported that the exact price of the premium service remains in doubt.
Google is expected to sell local ads to monetize the free service. Because Google will be able to locate users within 200 feet of their location, ads potentially could be targeted on a block-by-block basis.
Google-EarthLink last year competed against five other bidders--CBG, MetroFi, NextWLAN, SF Metro Connect, and Razortooth Communications--for the contract. EarthLink currently has contracts to provide Wi-Fi services in other locations, inclding two additional California cities and Philadelphia.
