Mark Evans

The Struggles of Municipal Wi-Fi

It didn’t seem that long ago that municipal Wi-Fi was all the rage as cities across North America scramble to roll out free or low-cost networks as an alternative to high-speed service offered by carriers and cablecos.

Today, the municipal Wi-Fi market appears to be, at best, a major disappointment. Chicago, for example, just decided to retreat from offering Wi-Fi service after failing to strike a deal with EarthLink or AT&T. In San Francisco, the city’s dream of a free Wi-Fi network has evaporated after EarthLink backed away from a plan. And here in Toronto, Toronto Hydro’s One Zone service has struggled to attract subscribers due to spotty coverage and a small network footprint.

So what’s gone wrong? In theory, a municipal Wi-Fi network should thrive given people want to be connected at any/all times. If done properly, Wi-Fi can become an important element of a city’s competitive plan to attract business while providing local citizens with an essential new economy tool.

The problem may be unrealistic expectations. It was assumed that municipal Wi-Fi was going to be a lot like broadband service with the same kind of reliability and speed. For the most part, this hasn’t happened so people have been disappointed and, as a result, municipal Wi-Fi has failed to gain much marketing momentum.

Maybe the issue is price. If Wi-Fi was free or super-cheat perhaps people would be happier with it. Of course, revenue - or the lack thereof - is one of the reasons why EarthLink has lost its enthusiasm for Wi-Fi.

Another issue may be that Wi-Fi technology just isn’t good enough, which I’m sure will rub a bunch of equipment makers the wrong way. Look at this way; offering wireless service in a major city is a huge challenge. To provide proper and reliable coverage, you need to have an awful lot of base stations, and even then you’ll probably have issues with buildings and line of site.

This is why there’s growing interest in Wi-Max as a way to effectively offer municipal wireless service. It may be that Wi-Max is the right technology, and that Wi-Fi’s best use is within the home and places such as hotels and cafes to serve the needs of customers.

In any event, I’m going to be speaking with Toronto Hydro Telecom president Dave Dobbin soon so look for another post on the future of municipal Wi-Fi. I’m sure Dobbin will provide an effective counter-argument.

For more thoughts, check out Ars Technica, which suggest cities would do themselves a favour by starting small as opposed to trying to provide city-wide coverage out of the gate. In summing up municipal Wi-Fi’s troubles, IP Democracy’s Cynthia Brumfield puts a nice (and smart) spin on things: “So, Wi-Fi, while very cool at Starbucks and around airport gates, just doesn’t pass the laugh test for a major metropolitan communications system.”

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Facebook: The New Goldrush

Over the past couple of weeks, I’ve been thinking and reading a lot about the economies of Facebook - not whether it’s worth $100-billion or whether the company will do an IPO rather than accept a zillionaire dollar takeover offer.

In particular, I’m talking about the thriving Facebook application landscape that a growing number of companies are enthusiastically jumping on. If a Web-based company doesn’t have a Facebook application already, they’ve got a team of developers pumped up with Red Bull and Skittles trying to create as soon as possible. According to Inside Facebook, there were 3,261 applications created in the first three months after Facebook opened up its API.

Some applications such as Top Friends, Video, iLike and Graffiti already have millions of users. Meanwhile, an investment community has quickly formed around the
Facebook platform with Bay Partners launching a Facebook-only fund that will invest $25,000 to $250,000 in Facebook start-ups. Then, you’ve got entrepreneurs getting involved hoping to be the next Where I’ve Been, which was reported acquired by TripAdvisor for $3-million.

In thinking about it, the landscape looks like like the Yukon gold rush of 1897 with a small number of lucky miners (Mark Zuckerberg, Peter Thiel, Greylock Partners, Meritech and Accel Partners) scoring the biggest and best claim while thousands of miners scramble to get in while the going is good.

Much like the suppliers during the gold rush made out like bandits by supplying all these miners with equipment, there is a growing number of development firms and consultants emerging to help build and market anything you want…for a fee, of course. It’s all about supply and demand, and right now the demand to get involved is clearly stripping demand.

The big question is monetization, and how these applications can turn users into dollars. CNNMoney has a terrific story looking at the different ways to cash in so there’s little need to elaborate much other than it looks like the most successful entrepreneurs will be the ones who got in early and were able to build a large user base before things got crazy.

Some of these people may be able to make money by selling their large user bases to companies that want to sell to a captive audience. TripAdvisor’s deal for Where I’ve Been a Perfect example. Others may be able to make money by selling things to their users, while others will simply be happy with any marketing zing they get.

For the vast majority, however, Facebook will be a process with no or little rewards. As much as everyone hopes to develop something that resonate with Facebook users, the competitive landscape is way too crowded already. Sure, there will be an exception to the rule but if an entrepreneur thinks there’s a big score to be made by jumping into Facebook now, he and his money will soon be separated.

Technorati Tags: Facebook

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Buying a Blackberry Can be Hazardous to Your Health

First, the good news: I got a Blackberry 8800 yesterday - slick design, GPS-enabled…very cool, although it is odd that the 8800 doesn’t come with a camera, while the Curve doesn’t come with GPS.

Getting the Blackberry, however, was a painful experience. Perhaps the first mistake was actually going to a Rogers store, which seemed like a good idea given you will get, in theory, good customer service. And the salesman was very helpful and diligent; going over our corporate plan, explaining the different service options, etc. All in all, it was top-notch customer service that you would expect when shelling out several hundred dollars.

Unfortunately, the process took about 45 minutes as the sales guy gathered a bunch of information, punched it into the computer, etc. All this while, we had to stand at the sales counter because there’s no chairs or tables in the store. Maybe not having tables and chairs lets the store maximize its expensive downtown real estate, or maybe it stops people from just hanging out (although why anyone would want to hang out at a Rogers store is beyond me!).

When everything was completed, I’m not sure whether I was happier about getting the Blackberry or finally being able to get back to the office so I could sit down.

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The Internet is Not Boring

Given Mark Cuban credit, he knows how to create a hornet’s nest of controversy - the latest being his contention the Internet is “boring” because it has evolved into a utility and there’s nothing “explosively exciting” on the horizon - mostly because the “last mile” into the home is still a trickle rather than a fast-flowing river.

Before getting into Cuban’s thesis, there are a couple of things that should be pointed out. Cuban is an agent provocateur. It’s his modus operandi, and something he clearly revels in using his high-profile blog as a vehicle for controversy. That said, Cuban’s also a very smart guy who calls a spade a spade. With Broadcast.com and his current HD initiatives, Cuban has always been big on bandwidth so it’s not surprising he’s disappointed given broadband in the U.S. leaves much to be desired.

Maybe Cuban is right; maybe the Internet has become a utility simply because it has become part of everyday lives. Today, no one marvels at connecting to the Web whereas a decade ago it was a thrill to hear the static associated with getting online with a dial-up connection.

If there’s a hole in Cuban’s thesis, it’s that he’s sitting too close to the fire to realize the Internet is still a marvelous thing for a lot of people how are thrilled about being able to pay their bills online, apply for jobs, surf the Web, watch YouTube videos, etc. For Cuban, this is meat and potatoes kind of stuff but for many people, high-def isn’t even in the picture so they’re more than happy with 5Mbps service (at least for the time being.)

Personally, the Internet and what’s available never ceases to amaze. I spent a good hour last weekend using StumbleUpon, and discovered a whack of great Web sites that immediately went on my del.ici.us account. I also spent some time watching videos, including a bunch of Wordpress tutorials - something that was difficult to easily do a couple of years ago.

Cuban may be bored because he’s looking for the next big thing online but the Internet is still a pretty amazing place for the rest of us. Of course, he does make a good point that more bandwidth will change everything but that’s another story for another day.

More: Fred Wilson has some thoughts on Cuban’s thesis - poking holes at Cuban’s belief the Internet is no different than it was five years ago, and that bandwidth is a critical factor in innovation. Not surprisingly, Loren Feldman has his own unique take on the Cuban vs. Wilson thing.

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Twitter: Where’s the Meat

It’s good to see that Fred Wilson is so excited that Twitter has introduced some new tools to invite friends into the fold - good news for anyone who has been patiently waiting for a Twitter invitation or terribly anxious for a way to easily invite friends.

Putting aside why you’d ever want to use Twitter in the first place, maybe Twitter should be focusing some of its attention on creating a business model. Yes, it’s wonderful to have a large user base but if you can’t figure out a way to make money from them or advertisers looking to reach them, what does it matter?

Clearly, Twitter’s investors, which include Fred Wilson’s Union Square Ventures and Marc Andreessen, were thinking big picture when they put some venture capital (reportedly $5-million) into the company last month. Maybe I’m missing something that but I thought the idea of creating a business was to generate sales and profits. Then again, maybe this is a build it (a service) and they (revenue) will come situation but so far, I’m firmly in the show-me camp.

For a chorus of “I’m so happy Twitter is now more user-friendly views”, check out Techmeme. At least, blognation mentions the unclear business model.

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Wordpress Videos

Although I’ve used Wordpress for more than a year, I’m just starting to get beyond just writing and inserting images. Given I seem to learn better from seeing rather reading, I’ve been happy to find a bunch of really good Wordpress videos recently. In thinking about it, short, well-produced tutorials may be a sweet spot in terms of trying to monetize online video. For a good Wordpress video tutorial program, I’d happily pay $10 or $20.

Here’s one on how to embed YouTube videos in a blog post:

Here’s one on making your blog more search engine-friendly:

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Exploring the World Beyond Tech

My Google Reader is chock-a-block with tech blogs - the obvious ones such as TechCrunch, Mashable, A VC, GigaOm; those written by friends such as Mathew Ingram, Rob Hyndman and Aiden Henry; and a bunch of Apple blogs such as The Unofficial Apple Weblog and A New Mac Tip Every Day.

But as the past few weeks, I’ve started to diversify my feeds into other areas - some related to specifics interests, and some just because they’re really interesting. Here’s a mini-list of some recent finds:

1. Kevin Kelly’s Cool Tools, which covers a variety of cools things such as books, gadgets, software, videos, maps, hardware or Web sites.

2. Wisebread, which is devoted to “personal finance and frugal living”.

3. Commute by Bike, a new favourite since I’ve started to bike to work again every day.

4. Four Reasons Why, a recently launched blog devoted to providing four reasons for a variety of things (e.g. Why James Bond Will Never Die; Why You Shouldn’t Drink Bottled Water)

5. Spacing Wire, an excellent city blog about Toronto.

6. PlanetEye, which launched last week. Note: I work for PlanetEye so it’s a must-read.
Meanwhile, I’ve also been pruning back the number of feeds in my reader. While Scoble can go through 622 feeds a day, I can realistically check out 20 to 30. (Speaking of Google Reader, just wondering why hasn’t the official Google Reader Blog been updated since June 22?)

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Things I Don’t Get…

1. Why has Sony insisted on maintaining its proprietary Memory Stick? When I was looking at digital cameras, Sony wasn’t even in the running because of the memory issue.

2. Mary Meeker. Even after being embarrassed during the dot-com boom as more of a promoter than an equity analyst, she’s still alive, well and bumbling along. In the meantime, Henry Blodget, who was forced to leave the analyst business, has proven he’s a pretty smart cookie.

3. The high cost of Apple accessories. Yesterday, I spent $25 on a mini-DVI to VGA connector that was probably made for $1. And while there were tons of oh-I-need-that products in the Apple store, it’s hard not to get a bad case of sticker shock when you see how much they cost. Speaking of Apple, it’s good to see someone cracked the iPhone/AT&T relationship.

4. Twitter. Can anyone explain to me why it’s useful other than as a tool to broadcast your thoughts or activities that only a small group of people (e.g. your family. close friends) would be interested in? Loren Feldman thinks Twitter will “be huge”.

5. Why it’s so difficult to find someone on Facebook. Sure, it has an advanced search tool but if you have a friend with a regular kind of name, good luck.

6. Why bloggers and blog readers love lists. Write a list (e.g. Five Things That Could Kill Facebook) and the world comes to your doorstep. Speaking of lists, check out Four Reasons Why - a entertaining and sometimes thought-provoking blog devoted to lists on a variety of topics.

7. Why RSS (Really Simple Syndication) is still RSS. If you want to push RSS into the mainstream, it need something catchier like Your Content Now or The Web’s Paperboy…or something like that. Maybe Dave Winer, who pioneered the creation of RSS, can step into the branding fray although I think he’d suggest RSS is just fine.

8. How Dell has fallen so far so fast while Hewlett-Packard has bounced back so strongly? Dell’s cache as a super-efficient computer maker has evaporated.

9. Why high-tech IPOs are all the rage again (e.g. VMWare, Classmates.com) amid a troubling credit crunch. Keith Benjamin, a venture capitalists, suggests the credit crunch will boost the high-tech IPO market because it will drive investors away from hedge funds and buy-out funds.

10. The fascination with people such as Justin.TV and Steve Mann who put cameras on themselves so other people can exactly what they are doing every second of the day. Today’s on-body camera episode features a guy driving to Los Angeles.

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What About a Web 2.0 Aggregrator?

Earlier this week, Steve Rubel had a terrific post on the challenges facing content owners at a time when consumers can compile the information they want (RSS feeds, images, video) into personalized portals such as Pageflakes or Windows Live. He contends this will make it increasingly difficult for content owners to make money online.

“If almost all content can be lifted from one spot and placed somewhere where it’s more convenient to the user, just how will it be monetized? The ramifications reach far and wide. It will impact anyone that wants to attract eyeballs - media companies, brand marketers and community/social networking sites.”

Rubel’s theory got me thinking about the Web 2.0 landscape where thousands upon thousands of applications/services are battling for attention. Since most of these applications are free, they need to attract a lot of users to be stay viable when the venture capital runs out.

One of the big challenges facing these applications is intense competition and, I would argue, a short attention-span among users. This means an application that is interesting enough to try and perhaps use today is quickly discarded when something that seems more interesting comes along. My Roboform database, for example, is chock-a-block with passwords for applications I haven’t used in months.

What be the salvation for many Web 2.0 applications is a place where users can aggregate all their favourites through widgets. For example, you could have GMail, Facebook, Skype and Basecamp accounts on a single destination with a common username and password. Whenever you found a new and interesting application, you would simply hit the widget button and have it imported into your Web 2.0 Portal/aggregator.

For consumers, this would offer a lot of convenience and maybe encourage people to use their applications on a regular basis or, at least, be aware they are available as opposed to gathering dust unseen and unused. For Web 2.0 companies, it could give their applications some stickiness based on the idea that once a consumer adds a new application to their portal, there would be a higher likelihood it would actually be used.

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Okrut: Does Anyone Care?

Apparently, Okrut is coming out with a new look and feel. The question is does anyone care outside of Brazil where Okrut, which is Google’s social networking service, is extremely popular? How is it that Google can have such a strong brand and large followings for search, blogging and GMail but be such a minor player in the hot social networking space? You figure Sergey and Larry would have tapped some of the billions in the Google vaults to jump-start the business but therein lies the mysteries of Google.

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