Joeychgo
04-06-2006, 03:08 AM
By Elise Ackerman
Mercury News
Google watchers who want to know what the Internet titan would do with a wireless network in a major metropolitan area may not have to wonder much longer.
A San Francisco advisory panel has recommended a joint bid by Google and EarthLink to build a city-wide wireless network, clearing the way for city staffers to begin contract negotiations with the two tech companies.
"We are committed to bring universal, affordable wireless broadband Internet access to all San Francisco's residents and businesses, and today we are one step closer to making good on that commitment,'' San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom said in a statement.
The bidding process had been closely watched by an unusual coalition of activists, who were anxious to see the mayor's pledge of universal access fulfilled, and technology players, who were eager to learn how the municipal network would fit into the Mountain View company's business.
Chris Vein, the director of San Francisco's technology department, said he is hopeful that a contract can be hammered out by the end of the year. The agreement must be reviewed for final approval by the city's board of supervisors.
In the winning proposal, Google will deliver advertising to support a free service, while EarthLink, one of the nation's largest Internet service providers, will provide the wireless access. Data transfer speeds would hover around 300 kilobits per second, slower than most DSL connections but faster than dialup.
EarthLink also will sell a no-ad service for about $20 a month that could be as much as four times faster than its no-cost counterpart.
In a statement, Google said it was "thrilled that the city of San Francisco has accepted our joint bid'' and looking forward to continuing the planning process.
"What I'm trying to do is balance speed with following appropriate policies and procedures and making sure we get the best deal for the city and county of San Francisco,'' Vein said.
Six companies responded to the city's request for proposals, which was issued in December.
Competitors to the EarthLink/Google bid included Communication Bridge Global of South San Francisco, MetroFi of Mountain View, nextWLAN of Los Gatos, Razortooth Communications of San Francisco and a partnership formed by SeaKay of San Francisco, including Cisco Systems of San Jose, and IBM.
A five-member task force scored the proposals according to a criteria established by the city. MetroFi was the panel's second choice after EarthLink/Google, followed by the SeaKay/Cisco/IBM team.
When it submitted its proposal, an Earthlink spokesman estimated that the Google-Earthlink plan would cost $6 million to $7 million to install, and $15 million for maintenance, billing and upgrades over the next 10 years. EarthLink would install about 1,500 radio transmitters -- made by Tropos Networks in Sunnyvale -- atop light poles across the city.
Though the identities of task force members were kept secret during the process, on Wednesday they were revealed to be Greg Richardson, a founder of Civitium, a consulting firm; Joseph John, manager of public safety services for the city's technology department; Hans Loffeld, IT director for the city's public utilities commission; Brian Roberts, senior policy analyst at the technology department; and Bram Elias, a policy analyst at the public utility commission.
Mercury News
Google watchers who want to know what the Internet titan would do with a wireless network in a major metropolitan area may not have to wonder much longer.
A San Francisco advisory panel has recommended a joint bid by Google and EarthLink to build a city-wide wireless network, clearing the way for city staffers to begin contract negotiations with the two tech companies.
"We are committed to bring universal, affordable wireless broadband Internet access to all San Francisco's residents and businesses, and today we are one step closer to making good on that commitment,'' San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom said in a statement.
The bidding process had been closely watched by an unusual coalition of activists, who were anxious to see the mayor's pledge of universal access fulfilled, and technology players, who were eager to learn how the municipal network would fit into the Mountain View company's business.
Chris Vein, the director of San Francisco's technology department, said he is hopeful that a contract can be hammered out by the end of the year. The agreement must be reviewed for final approval by the city's board of supervisors.
In the winning proposal, Google will deliver advertising to support a free service, while EarthLink, one of the nation's largest Internet service providers, will provide the wireless access. Data transfer speeds would hover around 300 kilobits per second, slower than most DSL connections but faster than dialup.
EarthLink also will sell a no-ad service for about $20 a month that could be as much as four times faster than its no-cost counterpart.
In a statement, Google said it was "thrilled that the city of San Francisco has accepted our joint bid'' and looking forward to continuing the planning process.
"What I'm trying to do is balance speed with following appropriate policies and procedures and making sure we get the best deal for the city and county of San Francisco,'' Vein said.
Six companies responded to the city's request for proposals, which was issued in December.
Competitors to the EarthLink/Google bid included Communication Bridge Global of South San Francisco, MetroFi of Mountain View, nextWLAN of Los Gatos, Razortooth Communications of San Francisco and a partnership formed by SeaKay of San Francisco, including Cisco Systems of San Jose, and IBM.
A five-member task force scored the proposals according to a criteria established by the city. MetroFi was the panel's second choice after EarthLink/Google, followed by the SeaKay/Cisco/IBM team.
When it submitted its proposal, an Earthlink spokesman estimated that the Google-Earthlink plan would cost $6 million to $7 million to install, and $15 million for maintenance, billing and upgrades over the next 10 years. EarthLink would install about 1,500 radio transmitters -- made by Tropos Networks in Sunnyvale -- atop light poles across the city.
Though the identities of task force members were kept secret during the process, on Wednesday they were revealed to be Greg Richardson, a founder of Civitium, a consulting firm; Joseph John, manager of public safety services for the city's technology department; Hans Loffeld, IT director for the city's public utilities commission; Brian Roberts, senior policy analyst at the technology department; and Bram Elias, a policy analyst at the public utility commission.