Communities Share The (Wireless) Wealth - Neighborhood groups set up Wi-Fi networks, deliver access for free.

By DAVID NOACK.
20 May 2004
(c) 2004 Investor's Business Daily

Tim Pozar is a man on a mission.

After watching the Internet boom link millions of Americans via wired networks - either dial-up or broadband connections - Pozar decided he wanted to go a step further, one neighborhood at a time.

He sees the next phase of the Internet's evolution as wireless community-based networks that offer easy, portable and free access to the information superhighway via portable computers.

That goal is already a reality in parts of the San Francisco Bay Area through a wireless network called the Bay Area Wireless Group, which Pozar founded. It lets residents within range of a main wireless connection, or access point, tap into the network.

Nationally there are there are hundreds of wireless community networks - everywhere from Seattle and Portland, Oregon, to New York City. Even local governments are getting into the act, offering wireless service in parks and other areas where people gather.

"A number of cities support this," said Pozar, a network and wireless engineer from San Francisco. "Long Beach (Calif.) is a good example."

Lodi, Calif., and Marin County, Calif., are also looking into the technology, he says. They could ultimately create a government-owned wireless Internet service provider, which would work in a similar vein as a city-owned power companies.

For the most part, wireless community networks are initiated through an informal gathering of friends, who decide to share broadband access.

"One person will put up an access point with an external antenna," Pozar said. "They may know the neighbors and contact them to share in the cost or give away the broadband access. Typically it is pretty informal."

Wireless community networks - also known as neighborhood area networks, or NANs - are based on a tradition of sharing, say supporters.

The networks differ from so-called hot spots - the wireless connections offered at coffeehouses, restaurants, airports and hotels. Hot spots have a limited reach and are mainly commercial ventures. Wireless community networks are free or carry a nominal charge for access.

If sales of Wi-Fi equipment are any indication, this is just the beginning of the wireless boom. Last year, 15 million Wi-Fi consumer devices such as laptops were shipped, a 95% jump from 2002, says research firm Synergy Research Group.

While sharing broadband access - via either digital subscriber line or cable - may seem altruistic, companies that provide Internet access in the first place often spurn the practice. They have "acceptable use policies" that typically prohibit broadband sharing.

"Cable companies are the more vocal against sharing bandwidth as they see it as much like sharing cable service," Pozar said. "There are actually laws on the books that prohibit this for cable companies."

However, there are some companies trying to take advantage of sharing.

A company in Seattle called Speakeasy, an independent provider of broadband access, offers a service called Wi-Fi NetShare. This allows Speakeasy subscribers to easily - and legally - extend their broadband connectivity to their neighbors.

This specialized service enables Speakeasy customers to become WiFi "administrators," who can then set up wireless zones within an available area - usually 300 to 500 feet - of their respective homes or businesses, using any commercially available WiFi equipment.

"Speakeasy is further expanding the broadband community by providing a no-hassle program that empowers our subscribers to share their Speakeasy broadband connections and not penalize them with unnecessary fees and restrictions," said Mike Apgar, Speakeasy's chief executive.

"We are committed to offering new services, such as WiFi NetShare, to those who want to explore innovative ways of optimizing their broadband connection," he said.

Michael Mee got involved with a wireless community network when he moved into a new neighborhood in San Diego. The software engineer offered his high-speed connection for others to share.

"In my case it was a goodwill and meet-the-neighbors gesture when I moved," he said. "About one in five had broadband on my cul-de-sac. All the ones without, ended up using my wireless."

Now Mee is the wireless guru behind the Golden Hill Free Internet, a wireless community network serving this neighborhood.

"I enjoy the community feeling it generates," he said.

However, too many wireless networks can create problems.

"NAN development may stumble as wireless grows," Mee said. "NANs like ours at Golden Hill ... are suffering growing interference from the proliferation. There's about 10 units on my street or backing on to it now when there was none three years ago."

Nigel Ballard is another backer of wireless community networks.

When not working as wireless director at Matrix Networks in Oregon, he lends his free time and expertise to the Personal Telco Project in Portland. It's a volunteer group attempting to bring free, high-speed wireless access to public places.

In the end, says Ballard, wireless community networks are all about sharing.

"Lots of folk like the idea of sharing," he said. "I pay for my connection 24/7, but I only use it 4/7. So why not let friends and neighbors use it?"