Friday, December 10, 2004
 
Recreating the Miracle of Cable

It looks like government officials in Madison, Wisconsin, want to return to the glory days of the 1980s, where local governments gave cable companies monopolies in exchange for wiring their communities. Instead of cable, though, Madison wants a single company to provide wireless Internet access to its citizens:
    Wireless Internet could be available in downtown Madison and at the Dane County Regional Airport by this spring, said mayoral spokesman George Twigg.

    The state Department of Administration is putting out a request for proposals today seeking vendors interested in building the network, said Twigg and Scott McDonell of the state Department of Administration.

    ...


    Twigg said the city is trying to strike a balance between imposing user fees and building the cost of using the network onto the property tax.

    "It's a tradeoff," he said.
Let me project what's going to happen:
  1. Some sucking connected wireless provider will bid low.

  2. As part of the contract, sucking wireless provider will want exclusive rights to downtown Madison and the airport.

  3. The wireless company will run over budget and will come weeping to the government to build finish the network it's contractually obligated to deliver.

  4. Government will spend taxpayer money to finish the network.

  5. Sucking wireless company will use a clause in its contract to increase user fees by up to 20% annually.

  6. Other local governments will think it's a good idea and will follow Madison's lead.

  7. It will become a felony to place a router in your downtown place of business to pay only one user fee for wireless access and connect multiple computers.
You think I am mad? Look at your cable bill and wonder why you're beholden to a single company for service.

(Link seen on Boots and Sabers.)


- posted by Brian J. @ 4:53 PM
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