San Francisco about to request WiFi proposals

This will be well worth following!

San Francisco officials on Tuesday said they will issue a formal request for proposals for a citywide Wi-Fi network, forgoing the chance to enter into direct negotiations with any of the 26 companies that have expressed interest in building the wireless system.

San Francisco is bidding to become one of the leaders in affordable municipal Wi-Fi, with its proposed citywide deployment. Mayor Gavin Newsom made the initiative a priority in August, hoping to follow in the footsteps of Philadelphia, which is expected to create the first big-city municipal wireless system next year.

While most observers expected the city to issue a proposal request, city officials had held out the possibility that the city could enter into direct negotiations with any of the vendors, including Google and MetroFi, which both offered to construct a network for free.

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WiMax is getting closer!

This is going to change the way we do wireless.

WiMax wireless broadband technology is gaining momentum worldwide with the announcement by Intel that carriers across the globe are deploying, or will soon be rolling out, fixed WiMax networks using the company’s technology.

WiMax, or Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access, creates hotspots that stretch dozens of miles, reaching much farther than typical Wi-Fi networks, and allow users to surf the Web wirelessly at speeds faster than today’s connections via a DSL or cable modem.

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