Replies to post #3671 on Mobilepro Corp (fka MOBL)

[PeeVeeCee]

thanks

[SeriousMoney]

MobilePro, Arizona City Sign Definitive Deal
By Susan Rush
June 23, 2006
NEWS@2 DIRECT

MobilePro is not stepping away from all of its municipal high-speed wireless deals. In fact, the company has signed a definitive agreement to move ahead with a planned deployment in the city of Yuma, Ariz.

The contract calls for MobilePro to design, deploy and operate a mesh wireless network in the community.

The planned Yuma wireless network will initially cover a portion of the city's total 106 square miles, according to MobilePro, which notes Yuma is one of the fastest growing cities in the United States. "We believe that high-speed Internet access is an essential service for rapidly growing communities like Yuma. We expect to begin deployment of the network this fall," says Jerry Sullivan, CEO of MobilePro's wireless division.

MobilePro's deployment will offer Wi-Fi-enabled devices free access to the network landing page, which will contain information about the service, instructions on how to connect and the city's Website.

The Arizona service launch announcement comes on the heels of MobilePro's decision to step away from its plan to establish a wireless broadband network with the city of Sacramento. MobilePro said it decided to abandon the project after city officials submitted a proposal that would have required the company to establish a free high-speed wireless network supported almost exclusively by advertising revenue. The proposal did not include the city serving as an anchor tenant, MobilePro said. The city's suggestion was not in line with MobilePro's plan to offer limited area, limited bandwidth, no-cost service while requiring higher bandwidth broadband users to pay a monthly fee.

Ultimately, MobilePro determined the Sacramento project was no longer in the best interest of the company.

http://www.wirelessweek.com/article/CA6346757.html

[SeriousMoney]

Fast action important on wireless

Lincoln will have to move fast if it wants to stay up to speed with other cities that are setting up municipal wireless Internet networks.

It’s unclear at this point whether the advertising-based business model will succeed. MobilePro believes that the city of Sacramento’s expectations are unrealistic. “What the city wanted was out of the question,” Jay Wright, MobilePro’s chief executive officer told the Wall Street Journal.

But the business model seems to be gaining momentum. In Sunnyvale, Calif., wireless Internet provider MetroFi made the switch on its own, reasoning that it would attract subscriptions more quickly. The company, however, declined to say whether it is making a profit.

In San Francisco, Google and Earthlink have teamed to offer a hybrid service in which users of free wireless Internet get slower speeds than paying customers.

In Portland, users can choose either free wireless Internet with a half-inch banner in their browser, or pay $19.95 a month for service without the ads.

Insistence by Sacramento city officials on free wireless Internet has dealt a setback to its plans. MobilePro has dropped out and city officials will have to restart the bidding process.

Meanwhile municipal wireless networks are multiplying. Boulder, Colo., Minneapolis, Madison, Wis., are among the more than 250 cities that have deployed or are planning to deploy municipal wireless networks.

If Lincoln doesn’t move quickly, Nebraska’s capital city will find itself falling behind.

http://www.journalstar.com/articles/2006/06/26/editorial_main/doc449dd2c276876652132559.txt