Via SF Chronicle and SEOBook.
Google Inc. has offered to blanket San Francisco with free wireless Internet access at no cost to the city, placing a marquee name behind Mayor Gavin Newsom’s effort to get all residents online whether they are at home, in a park or in a cafe.
The offer by the popular Mountain View search engine was one of more than a dozen competing bids received by the city before its deadline Friday. Officials will review the submissions and decide which, if any, of the candidates gets the green light to build the so called Wi-Fi service, which would be free or inexpensive for users.
In JB’s earlier post “Mobile’s Inching Closer to Web Models” (June 10, 2005), he wondered aloud about how “folks can deliver cool applications and business models to (their) mobile device without having to cut Verizon, Sprint, or someone else in on the deal. Will it ever happen?” Well, the Google scheme will open up mobile apps (including voice)and may eventually cut out the carriers. Oh, and incidentally, it will “cut in” Google. Comments?
Google is flat-out going to replace the telecom companies. It’s not a very big step from offering free WiMax to giving us all free telecom services built around the internet.
Google just doesn’t want the telcos to know that yet. Any day now, thetelcos will start lobbying Congress to regulate and hobble Google.
Google will replace the telcos because 1) It can and 2) We all want it to. Good riddance.
Light Reading http://www.lightreading.com/document.asp?doc_id=80968 has some articles about Google’s telecom acquisitions.
Not important whether google whether somebody else is offering wifi, important there are no cables and it is possible everywhere or in the park or into the underground to use from the Internet. Very much I value the freedom and it is pleasant to carry the notebook and horsefly they want to use the Internet.