Free Is a Very Good Price: Let’s Talk Wi-Fi

There was a time not so long ago when youth supposedly had an edge in technological advances, when our elders were assumed to be “out of it” when it came to computers and other quickly developing gadgetry. Well, it looks as if whatever water that theory held might be dripping away. You might have heard the sound of the drips had you followed CUB Executive Director Bob Jenks to his speaking engagement yesterday at a national committee meeting of the AARP. These retired persons did not want to talk golf, or canning, or even the (somewhat deplorable) state of current medical costs. They wanted to talk Wi-Fi, the broadband access to the Internet that is available by means of an antenna receiving radiowaves.

The AARP wanted to talk Wi-Fi because that technology can dramatically reduce the cost of high speed Internet access and help bridge the digital divide. That makes it possible for low-income Americans to participate in the online information age. They wanted to have that discussion here in Portland, Oregon because Portland (so they say) has it all going on. So, what is going on with Wi-Fi in Oregon and in Portland?

Well, as you may know, quite a bit. Here are four examples of current and upcoming broadband projects in Oregon.

1. Hermiston, Oregon has for almost 2 years been the site of the nation’s largest Wi-Fi network, an area that encompasses 600 square miles. Originally created to support the needs of the Port of Umatilla and the nearby Army Depot, it has been offered free of charge to local residents as well.

2. Portland-based Personal Telco Project is a non-profit created to promote the availability of broadband access through Wi-Fi “nodes” or broadcast hotspots set up in various neighborhoods, of which Portland currently has over 100. Bob Jenks lives near one of these nodes and will soon hit his second anniversary of free Internet service at his house.

3. Personal sharing of a broadband signal is also used more informally, often between neighbors who might split the cost of a broadband service and share the encryption code (note: this is forbidden in contracts with some of the larger broadband providers but not by all telecommunications carriers).

4. Portland will soon become one of only two major U.S. cities (the other being Philadelphia) to offer Wi-Fi access throughout the city. Downtown Portland is due to have free broadband in December of this year, with the rest of the city covered within 2 more years. This is a public/private partnership, with the city providing the poles and right-of-way and private sources covering start-up costs. Rather than subscribing to the broadband service, residents will be able to access it for free, with advertisers footing the bill (this is a pilot project for doing advertiser-supported Wi-Fi on this scale).

CUB notes that current prices for the faster Internet connection services such as DSL (offered by Qwest or Verizon), cable (offered by Comcast), or broadband offered by cell phone companies (such as Sprint or Cingular) tend to be on the expensive side, running anywhere from $50 to $75 per month. This prices a lot of people out of the market, particularly those living on a fixed income. In comparison, a card or antenna to receive broadband Internet access can be purchased for $10-$25. After that initial purchase, the consumer, in a place such as Portland, Hermiston, or Philadelphia, could be truly “home free.”

This may be one reason that, even though the expansion of Wi-Fi coverage may be the most exciting telecomm topic for everyone from the AARP to the folks at Personal Telco, it does not have a place at the table on the current Task Force on Telecommunications created by Oregon’s Senate Bill 17. Bob Jenks sits on the Task Force, as well as 4 legislators, and members of the Incumbent Local Exchange Carriers (the old Baby Bells), and the Independent Oregon Telecommunications Assoc. (smaller local carriers), Wireless Cell Phone Providers, and the Cable Industry. There is pretty broad representation from throughout this industry but the group has not spent 5 minutes on Wi-Fi. The fact that each of these industry segments offers their own broadband at a cost of more than $50 per month could explain why Wi-Fi is not being discussed or promoted within the telecomm industry.

A New York Times article about the Hermiston Wi-Fi phenomenon stated that “Indeed, we need to envision broadband Internet access as just another utility… Other American towns need to follow Hermiston… in ensuring broadband Internet access as reliably as they do water or electricity.” Affordability added to reliability makes the prospect really shine.

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