There is plenty of interesting discussion going on here at Emerging Telephony. This is a quick post after a fun presentation. There is certainly a few marketing dollars targeted at this audience with T-shirts, postcards etc. I've been listening to the FON presentation which promises internet everywhere, Wi-Fi everywhere and the mission to build a WiFi nation globally. More than anything they are trying to build a community around shared access to Wi-Fi. Thus joined together into one network. I think this is an idea whose time has come. They will need this group, this audience to promote it and make it happen. One difficulty in the US is the license for most of us restricts sharing in this way. Will your ISP clamp down? To that I don't know.

I'm also aware of a similar example Wibiki. The business models are different and I'd have to look more deeply to asses the differences. It's perhaps worth reflecting on the earlier deals Skype did with Boingo. The models above have the potential to obsolete such deals. What they are both learning from is the capability to create a universal log-in to Wi-Fi. Interestingly, both of these types of initiatives could benefit from Skype sponsorship.

Tag : etel