More wireless

Esme Vos of Muniwireless.com has chipped in on the news that AnchorFree Wireless has established two new hotspots in the upper Fillmore and the Castro. Esme echoes some of the concerns I have had about AnchorFree's choice of neighborhoods

I am very pleased to see that there is now free Wi-Fi in a small area of the Castro where I stay from time to time when I am in San Francisco, but I am concerned that the lower income areas, which could really use free access, are not getting it.

Look at the areas in which free Wi-Fi is available - the Castro, Fillmore, Marina, Union Square. They are all upscale shopping districts. I understand the motivation of AnchorFree - it wants to support free service via advertising and you can do that right now only in places where people have money to spend on the goods and services being advertised. AnchorFree is not a charity, after all.

This brings me to the question: who will take responsibility for deploying cheap access in the areas where it is needed? If business will not do it, who will?

She also brings some broader perspective to the situation by pointing out the hypocrisy of the telecom companies who bemoan any government involvement in the internet, while happily accepting government subsidies and contracts.

As I mentioned, the danger of an approach like AnchorFree's is that once the wealthier neighborhoods have coverage, the overall will to ensure broad coverage for San Franciscans is decreased. Someone who's connected at home in the Marina, at work, and at her favorite cafe on Chestnut is not likely to support a city effort to connect areas that don't already have coverage. After all, from her perspective, all the important parts of the city are covered!