[1st-mile-nm] Cities Struggle With Wireless Internet

[Andrew Cohill]

On May 21, 2007, at 10:45 PM, Richard Lowenberg wrote:

> Here's a fairly long article from today's Houston Chronicle and the  
> AP.
> It expands on an issue that I briefly mentioned at a small meeting  
> held
> today in Santa Fe, to discuss and generate interest in a city fiber  
> net.
>
> The economic model for muni-wireless deployments is increasingly being
> questioned, as some early deployments do not fulfill their  
> intentions and
> promises.
>

What I am finding is that in some cases, the initial cost of wireless  
(i.e. first year expenditures) are being compared to the thirty year  
cost of fiber to "prove" that wireless is cheaper.  A fairer  
comparison would look at the thirty year cost of wireless with the  
thirty year cost of fiber.  When you do so, fiber becomes very  
attractive price-wise.  Over thirty years, the wireless radios and  
equipment will have to be replaced several times.  Fiber electronics  
also have to be replaced, but in a fiber network, the electronics  
represent a much smaller portion of the total system cost.

Richard's point about the economics is also appropriate.  We're doing  
very detailed cost analyses of service-oriented networks extended out  
over many years, and it is very difficult to make wireless-only  
networks perform financially.  Video of all kinds, including business  
videoconferencing needs, add substantially and positively to a  
community broadband business model.  Even newer N and WiMax wireless  
systems can't handle ubiquitous video access and services, and the  
rapid transition to HD video is accelerating the bandwidth gap faster  
than the new wireless solutions can keep up.

Andrew

-------------------------------------------------
Andrew Michael Cohill, Ph.D.
President
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