Building a Wireless ISP Network... The Opportunity

In the US, most of the people have one or more broadband access services to choose from - variations of DSL from multiple vendors and cable. That is if you're in a metropolitan area. For more rural locations your choices are limited.....if you have any at all. Therein lies an opportunity for those willing to pursue it.

In the rural areas of the country, the selection is limited. Satellite is available to anyone (at high cost), but between dial up and T1 there are no options for many residents. Satellite suffers from latency, making it unsuitable for VoIP and some other real time Internet services. Some applications that should not be sensitive to latency (email, Web forms) will perform poorly or fail due to the increased packet time.

The traditional carriers (RBOC) and resellers face a cost issue in bringing broadband service to outlying areas. Without a concentration of users the per user cost at published rates causes either a poor or negative margin. The way cost accounting is done in larger corporations makes the business case worse for a large carrier. Cost allocations between departments for such things as floor space, personnel, and backend support end up as added costs rather than leverage opportunities. Traditional wired service will not reach outlying residents unless mandated by law, and the trend is against this happening in the near future.

So the opportunity is open for a business offering Internet broadband access service to outlying residents.

Therein lies a tremendous opportunity.

Now....just how do you go about taking advantage of this opportunity, filling a need, and building a wireless ISP network?

To assist you with working through the planning and execution of this effort here are some insights and resources you should consider:

* Business Continuity Planning - This isn't the technical side of the business, the backup systems, redundant pathing, fail-over and restore, or alternate location stuff. Here you're looking at subjects such as Legal Structure, Personnel Insurance, Asset Insurance, and Process and Procedure.

* Revenue and Profit - Covers where and how to create your income including installation, basic monthly service, custom access service, volume or corporate pricing, other services, business partnerships, usage based service, civic service, and tower leasing (or you could build and provide your own).

* Security Issues - There's much to consider in this arena. Don't overlook it.

* Bandwidth issues - The access line to your tower(s) is likely the critical factor to success. Whether it's a T1 or a DS3 line. First off, it probably represents your single largest operational cost. Next, it determines the maximum quality of service you can provide.

Quotes you receive for bandwidth will probably be very different in terms of cost and performance guarantees, and should cover Performance Standards, Service Availability, Mean Time to Respond, Mean Time to Repair, Latency, Packet Loss, and Jitter. To help you search for the best match provider for your bandwidth requirements....I recommend utilizing the services of an unbiased independent broker by submitting a RFQ request to DS3-Bandwidth.com.

Here are some additional resources that may be of benefit to those developing a WISP....or thinking of it.

StartAWisp.com

WISP Centric

There's also an excellent forum for discussion of ideas and issues between WISP owners and potential developers at DSLReports.com.

Final advice.....think strategically taking care to consider the business areas hilighted above. Do make use of an independent unbiased broker for the bandwidth decsion. Also, apply the resources shared here as well as any others discovered from your own research.

Michael is the owner of FreedomFireCommunications....including Business-VoIP-Solution.com. Michael also authors Broadband Nation where you're always welcome to drop in and catch up on the latest BroadBand news, tips, insights, and ramblings for the masses.

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WiFi In The Cross-Hairs

In 1999, the European countries kicked off plans to auction spectrum for 3G. A ballpark US$200B down the road and 3G still seeks validation. But the establishment is on its side allowing the 3G bus to careen from country to country leaving a trail of red ink. However, just one ISP blunders with WiFi deployment in American cities and the Inquisition is back.

To understand better the brouhaha hark back to 2004 when Verizon launched a political broadside against Wireless Philadelphia. Demonstrating just what clout means Verizon got Pennsylvania Governor Ed Randell to sign a law barring MuniWireless initiatives unless the municipality or local body first offered the incumbent service provider an opportunity to deploy its own network. That the incumbent had all these past years to deploy a broadband network and didnt simply means irony does not trump political muscle.

Then a funny thing happens. There was a groundswell of protest from the citizenry making the good Governor rapidly backtrack resulting in a last-minute deal allowing Wireless Philadelphia to proceed and with EarthLink subsequently winning the contract to deploy. MuniWireless was now officially in the telecom establishments cross-hairs. Taking on City Hall is one thing. But to take on the corporate telecoms establishment, groundswells and big cojones arent enough. Especially when the ISP depends on the same incumbent to provide fixed line connectivity to WiFi base stations.

In 2005 Diana Neff ?the lady behind Wireless Philadelphia ?explained its economics to me:
- In lieu of Capex related payments, the city government becomes the anchor tenant.
- Power, locations for base stations provided for free.
- ISP free to offer internet access into homes , offices at commercial rates.
- Free Internet access in open parks.
- Subsidized Internet access to weaker sections.

Thats the economic gist. Is its net wherewithal enough to rumble with fully amortized copper running voice and owned by an incumbent able to cherry picks where to put its DSLAMs? Id say, barely. Just about. If all goes well. Now, if the municipalities were to ante up to also mitigate the Capex burden in addition to becoming anchor tenants, we could have a robust stand-off.

Here is the core argument on the economics.
- Nothing is free.
- Recurring revenues are a bitch to kick-off. To generate a stream that makes sense is usually a three year wait. This is the incumbents huge advantage. His three year wait occurred in the Triassic era.
- If the municipalities pay for equipment and become anchor tenants, MuniWireless has money then to wait out the gestation period required for monthly recurring revenues to stack up.
- If the municipalities are not going to pay for equipment, they need to ante up properly as anchor tenants. If neither, the MuniWireless operation goes bust.
- Again, the same economics do not apply to a cellular player because the 2G networks are comfortably amortized and the service ubiquitous.
- Unbundled services from the incumbent are a bedrock for MuniWireless economics. Without it the whole enterprise remains fraught.
- Lastly, look at the blood around 3G to understand what it takes to launch a new service, even when the service is allowed to rest on 2G crutches. In comparison, WiFis burn is peanuts and all it takes for the economics to work is at a minimum, strict & wholehearted adherence to the Neff model.

Its safe to say that besides a continued reliance on incumbent backhaul, the basics of the Neff formula werent adhered to as ISPs like EarthLink sought to light up Americas urban landscapes. In a rush to move away from a dying dial-up business deals were signed up at the same velocity they are currently unwinding. We watched from the sidelines as each new deal resulted in one more concession and then another and another thrusting a precedence on the rest of the industry. By 2007, cities were refusing anchor tenancies and delivering a double whammy instead by demanding free services if the ISP were to be allowed to address the city population.

MuniWireless?teething problems then have more to do with possible economic mismanagement and incumbent hostility than with WiFi technology. The same WiFi for example, is working wonderfully for T-Mobile in their WiFi@home service linking your home WiFi and the thousands of T-Mobile WiFi hotspots to their cellular network. This service is WiFi's wedge into the telecom establishment's door.

So someone may have screwed with MuniWireless but WiFi isnt the perp.

Seeing T-Mobiles intent theres more to WiFi than WiFi. I wrote in 2005 about patching WiFi to cellular networks suggesting UMA (Unlicensed Mobile Access) as a method for cellular companies to co-opt WiFi and bring true broadband into the realm without investing in a questionable 3G. Kudos to T-Mobile for doing it two years later.

But WiFi-cellular links are already pass. If the cellular companies have been too slow/reluctant/hostile to the technology doesnt mean the technology wasnt there. WiFi is the tip of an OFDMA iceberg and the WiFi-WiMax nexus is whats going to shake up the networks next. One doesnt expect to see a WiMax operator mulling too much on the pros & cons of connecting to WiFi at the edges over a common IP back end. The first casualty of such ubiquitous footprints with high speed mobile wireless broadband access to the internet is going to be band-aid applications like Blackberry. Whether you sit at Starbucks, walk up to your car with your Frappuchino or drive off home, you can directly access your email server/service at a minimum 2-5mbps.

There are some very dedicated people working hard at IEEE under the IEEE P802.21 working group to develop standards for these vertical (cellular ?WiFi) and horizontal (WiFi-WiMax) nexuses. The standard is slated for finalization by 2008 at which point WiFi begins its real role as the owner of the edge. As we old telecom hands have learnt at great expense, thats where the winning lottery ticket is hidden.

For a non-incumbent, to make sense of a WiFi-centric business one needs to adhere to the economic arguments made in these article. That keeps the business afloat while you spread your network one home after another, one caf after another. Your intent is to have as large a footprint as possible before you make that call to T-Mobile.

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Broadband - Why Isn't Wireless-N the New G?

Wireless broadband is becoming more and more of a commodity than a rarity these days, in the past households tended to have one computer usually stashed away in a box room or a corner somewhere and home internet was set up by your Internet provider to come in through the wall into one machine. Well over the past five years wireless internet has quickly brought internet access to everyone in the household not just one machine.

It's not surprising really, considering most typical households will have a main computer, then there will be the laptop that the eldest takes away to university to do work on and chances are another child will have their first computer in their room for talking to their friends online. Queuing up to use the internet used to be like queuing for the bathroom in the morning.

Wireless broadband came about when people bought Wireless routers, equipment that allows one internet connection to be shared amongst many computers in a small area, whilst it was computer enthusiasts that initially used these you can now get wireless broadband from your internet service provider as a product. An engineer will come out and fit the router and add all your devices to the internet connection.

The technology initially worked to certain strength, dubbed 802.11b it didn't have fantastic range and the strength of your connection depended on how thick the walls were between your PC and the router, invariably like most early technologies it wasn't that impressive with poor data speeds being reported, not only that but other wireless transmitting devices in the home such as TV remotes and even microwave ovens interfered with the signal.

This all changed with the next generation of wireless standards 802.11g chances are if you have any wireless devices they are probably wireless G enabled. Most home video game consoles and mobile phones will connect to a wireless G standard, it provides much faster speeds over the wireless airwaves as well as being strong enough to penetrate the thickest of house walls.

The thing is that Wireless G too is getting old and the craving for quicker speeds brought about the next generation, Wireless N. Wireless N is much more powerful and allows most remote computers to achieve speeds much more like being connected via an Ethernet cable. Whilst most people will typically choose the latest and greatest technology for some reason Wireless N routers and their equipment has not taken off and remains sat on computer store shelves.

Why is this happening especially in the ever changing nature of gadgets and electronics? Well most people put it down to being simply happy enough with wireless G, as well as this most routers for the G standard are cheap enough to be provided by home broadband suppliers for free, (being subsidised by the suppliers monthly charges). Couple that with that most devices that people use such as the Sony Playstation 3, iPhone and Apple TV all use Wireless G it makes for not much need to go faster since the speed boost wouldn't affect these devices.

Most wireless N equipment is obviously more expensive and if you have many computers and other devices sharing your broadband connection then you don't want to be spending money on unnecessarily excessive technology.

For now Wireless N seems to be on the verge of being the new standard as far as consumers are concerned and so there are some people who are buying now in anticipation but until Wireless G becomes obsolete or overburdened then for the typical broadband user, G will do just fine.

If you are looking for cheap broadband whether you have an existing provider or not then you can compare broadband deals online. Also if you are thinking about changing your supplier then check your connection using one of the various broadband speed test websites to see whether you are getting your money's worth.

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Broadband Reviewed

The Government are planning to review the broadband speed in the UK after it was suggested that they should pay for installing new infrastructure into companies. The reason for this review, which is to be carried out by the former chief executive of Cable and Wireless, Francesco Caio, is so that the Government can clearly understand how they can update the quality of the broadband that the UK is currently using.

The need for a better and faster broadband system is due to the fact that many more companies and consumers are now using the internet and therefore, high-capacity cables are called for. France and Germany are at present trialling a faster broadband connection that offers a broadband speed that puts the UK's connection speed to shame.

The rise in the number of consumers wanting faster broadband is due to the increase in people downloading music and films. The current infrastructure cannot cope with this demand and as a result, people now want and require a faster connection that our European neighbours have. The Government have said that they endeavour to adopt new technologies to ensure that the UK does not get left behind in the technological race.

It was April of last year when the Broadband Stakeholder Group advised that the Government had just two years in which to find ways of increasing their investment in next generation of broadband speeds and connections.

However, installing the new cables needed for this is very expensive, in fact, it has been estimated by Enders Analysis that it could cost 1.1 bn in order to offer the faster service to 5.6m BT customers.

As well as money, another problem that stands in the way of obtaining a faster broadband speed is that some people will not see the need for a much faster connection and may therefore not be willing to pay for the service.

Companies and consumers use the internet more and therefore need a faster broadband connection.

France and Germany are already trialling a faster broadband connection.

One possible problem may be that some people will not see the need for an even faster broadband connection.

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Education Key in Slowing Laptop Theft

Corporations spend billions of dollars each year repeating the same message over and over. It's called advertising and it works. A similar approach, according to a recent Processor story, stands the best chance of slowing the never ending tide of stolen laptops: Keep telling employees that they have to guard their machines, and keep telling them how to do it.

Security, of course, is not at the forefront of every employee's mind. Indeed, people take dumb chances. They leave machines unattended when they go to the rest room in a public venue. They leave them lying on the front seat of an unlocked car when they run into a store. The theme of the Processor piece is that continually drilling best practices and corporate policies into the heads of employees may gradually mitigate this behavior. It's important because the problem is so big: The Safeware Insurance Agency reports that more than 600,000 machines are stolen annually. About $5.4 billion in proprietary information is lost, and 97 percent of the purloined machines are lost forever.

The story also provides advice on issues tangentially related to stopping theft, such as the importance of management systems to track machines and the use of strong passwords and other strategies to thwart criminals when they do succeed in stealing the machines.

The problem of companies not even knowing if a machine is lost or stolen goes hand-in-hand with theft prevention. The centerpiece of a recent Canadian Technology News story is a study by Absolute Software that spotlights some disturbing malfeasance by respondents: 62 percent say that missing computers aren't even noticed and another 20 percent say that nothing is done about breaches.

Innovative tools are available, however. The bulk of the piece describes how Absolute Software tracks, manages and recovers wayward computers. The story provides a common-sense rationale for use of such software: Regardless of the impact it has on outside criminals, it is certain to chill internal theft simply because employees will know that it is there.

This PC World story reports on a product that is available in the UK. It is a modern-day equivalent of the prologue from the old Mission: Impossible television show, in which the tape detailing the ridiculous assignment Jim and the gang will pull off in 60 minutes (minus commercials) starts burning seconds after delivery its message. In this case, Virtuity's BackStopp will wipe data off hard disks if the machine is taken from an unauthorized area. The surveillance is done via the Internet, Wi-Fi or Global System for Mobile communication or radio frequency identification if the laptop is turned off.

The story adds that if a machine has a Webcam, it can be instructed to take a picture of the presumptive thief and transmit it to the central office. The data destruction procedures, which meet standards set by the U.S. Department of Defense's National Industrial Security Program Operating Manual, occur without alerting the thief.

A somewhat similar initiative, this one in India, is Locate Laptop from Unistal Systems. The software reports its location whenever it logs on. Thus, the owner or his or her company visit a Web portal to get a fix on a stolen machine. The IT Nerd provides a lot of useful links: iAlertU, Laptop Alarm, Lojack For Laptops and, for physically securing a laptop, Kensington Cable. The writer concludes that the best way to stop laptop theft is cutting down the amount of time the machine is left unattended.

There is good news and bad news in all this. The good news is that there is a lot of technology aimed at securing, managing, finding and, when necessary, disabling laptops. The bad news is that there are many people stealing laptops - and many corporate workers who are not paying attention.

Laptop thefts are costly. Read about the cost of Nashville laptop thefts: http://www.itbusinessedge.com/item/?ci=37828

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Switching Broadband Providers

For millions of broadband users who may be tempted by a better deal from another provider, the fear has always been that of being stuck in an internet-less limbo? waiting until their new service is switched on.

Thankfully, changes to the way switches take place have dramatically improved the situation.

On 14 February 2007, Ofcom introduced a code of conduct for moving between broadband service providers called the MAC Code of Conduct.

If they wish to switch, broadband customers need a Migration Authorisation Code (MAC). The Migration Authorisation Code is a 17 to 19-digit unique identifier code consisting of both letters and numbers.

MACs usually begin with "BBIP", "FTIP", "BBDS", or "BBDP", and consist of 4 letters, 7 numbers (sometimes up to 9), a forward slash, 2 letters, 2 numbers, and 1 final letter.

Once requested, your internet provider should provide you the MAC code within 5 working days. This code will then be valid for 30 days in which the customer may switch broadband providers. While it should not take any longer than 10 working days to switch your broadband, there is no set limit imposed on broadband providers to switch you to a new provider and it can take up to 5 weeks.

Your internet service provider cannot refuse your request for a MAC code and must not charge you for the code either. This was introduced to help ease the process of switching your broadband and also allowing the switch to be done in just a few hours resulting in a temporary loss of internet.

The only exceptions for refusal are as follows:

?The account holder does not comply with standard checks by the ISP
?A contract is already terminated
?The MAC has already been requested
?The ISP has already submitted a cease request
?The ISP is unable to obtain a MAC from ISP whom customer is switching to

These rules were set by Ofcom, although, some broadband providers have been known to bend the rules just a little.

This has led some questions about whether some broadband service providers try and make it as difficult as possible for you to switch.

Even though broadband providers must comply with the rules, most providers will try to convince you to stay. They may question you about who you wish to move to and your reasons why and single out comparisons between themselves and their competitor in an attempt to hold on to you as a customer.

In some cases they may offer you something in return for your loyalty as a customer, for example a free upgrade to a higher level of service.

From your perspective, if you are satisfied with the level of service on offer from your existing provider, it always makes sense to listen to any offers that are made.

However, if you are determined to switch, you should so ?and the new MAC system should make it a lot easier to do so.

If you are interested in taking advantage of current broadband internet technology then you should compare many broadband providers available in your area.

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Download Wii Games - How to Download and Play Nintendo Wii Games

If youre still buying your Nintendo Wii Games from your local games shop, stop! Now theres a lot easier way to get all your Wii media. Downloading games from the internet has recently become popular for platforms like the Playstation 2 and the PSP but now you can download your Wii Games online. Wii Media Downloads is the first online service that allows you to do this. Imagine only paying a small one-time fee, less than the price of one Wii game, and having access to a massive database of all the latest games for life.

Not only games, Wii Media Downloads lets you download music, TV shows, movies, software and more, then instantly play them on your Nintendo Wii. Imagine playing one game whilst downloading another one. Goodbye Boredom! Wii Media Downloads has a number of great features when you join, allowing you to download all their media whenever you like. Unlike a lot of services online, theres no monthly fee to pay, you pay once and youve got access for life.

The service also includes all the tools you need for downloading and playing your new games and media and if you ever need any questions asked, theres a 24/7 customer support team waiting to help you. Wii Media Downloads also includes a money back guarantee, no questions asked in case your not happy with their service. What have you got to lose?!

So to sum up, Wii Media Downloads lets you download great, new Wii Games, Music, TV shows, Movies, Software and more, for only a small one-time fee. They have a 24/7 support service and a money back guarantee.

To check out a full review of Wii Media Downloads Click Here

If you want to download games for another platform check out the Video Games Gateway

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