"Hotspot Zones" Born from Muni-Fi Failures and Hotspot Successes

Remember all those failed Muni-Fi (or Metro Wi-Fi) deployments in the mid-2000's? Well, most of them failed due to a combination of poor business planning where no anchor tenancy was established, advertising wasn't sufficient to foot the bill, over-zealous Wi-Fi design that called for far too few wireless APs (and subsequently poor performance), and difficulty in obtaining access rights to utility poles to get power and backhaul for AP locations which stalled deployments. (Read about all that over here; Minneapolis seems to be one bright spot in all that).

Now, Muni-Fi appears to be making a bit of a comeback. Although everyone has ditched that terminology, likely to avoid bringing the negative connotation that now comes with it :) This is not completely without just cause, as the focus has shifted from providing pervasive coverage over entire cities, to focused coverage in specific public areas where it makes sense. In some respects, I consider these new deployments a hybrid between Muni-Fi (pervasive public area coverage) and Hotspots (coverage in a specific location, typically tied to an establishment such as a coffee shop). I'd call them "Hotspot Zones".

AT&T and other carriers have installed hotspot zones in a few major urban areas, such as Manhattan and San Francisco. And Wi-Fi is even being installed in old phone booths in NYC to ease rights-of-way issues.


LightReading describes this initiative:

New York City's plan to house hot spots in pay phones to provide free Wi-Fi service in the Big Apple illustrates just how much wireless LAN has become part of everyday life even as the public telephone system has become a thing of the past. 

The city is working with pay-phone companies Titan and Van Wagner to install the hot spots, according to NY1 TV.

And the folks at Smart Wi-Fi provide insight on the economics of deployment in old phone booths:

Obviously phone booths are connected via the two wires needed for a POTS line which could easily be augmented with a DSL session.  Along with power, the locations can easily be re-born to a ‘smartphone’ world.  Maybe we can dub these “smartphone booths”. 

Putting Wi-Fi access points into un-used phone banks makes some sense, particularly with the new Next Generation Hotspot (NGH) and HotSpot2.0 initiatives.  Acompany can use their right-of-way to install and maintain the access points while changing back-end service providers (Boingo, iPass, AT&T, …) to enable their subscriber’s access.

What's the difference this time around?

First, and most importantly, the deployment model has shifted from "large-scale" Wi-Fi installations trying to light up entire cities and communities, to much more focused "hotspot-zones" where Wi-Fi is deployed in areas that make sense from a public and consumer point-of-view.

Second, Wi-Fi is much more accessible and mobile than it was 7-10 years ago. Users increasingly no longer need to carry around laptops to access Wi-Fi hotspots, they have much more convenient access from smartphones and tablets. That should help increase adoption, improve the free Wi-Fi through advertising business model, and help these hotspot zones succeed.

Finally, Wi-Fi technology has dramatically improved with 802.11n, offering better speeds and rate-over-range for customer devices, translating into better service quality and perception.

It's all about the business model folks :) Okay - and some technology too.

Cheers,
Andrew

Wi-Fi Article Round-Up: 2011/03/30

Here are a collection of Wi-Fi related articles that I have found useful, interesting, or enlightening. As always, for a complete list of articles check out my shared article feed from Google Reader.


My Stuff

• I posted recaps for Wireless Tech Field Day (Day 1 and Day 2), and more thorough reviews of HP Networking and MetaGeek presentations.
• I compiled a comprehensive list of articles and videos from Wireless Tech Field Day. Keep checking back, as it will be updated as new articles and videos are posted!
• I detailed Aerohive HiveAP Provisioning Basics.
• I wrote two articles on DHCP related topics and wireless LANs: Explaining DHCP Server 1.1.1.1 and Preventing DHCP Starvation Attacks.
• I gave a rundown on Understanding Wi-Fi Carrier Sense. You may also be interested in my previous 5-part series on Wi-Fi QoS and Medium Contention.

General Wi-Fi Articles

• Ekahau Site Survey 5.5 was released, which includes capacity planning, helping administrators design networks for increasingly dense client environments.
• Enterprise Wi-Fi needs a change in mindset (ZDNet) describes how wireless network have historically been under-provisioned, and that designs must be updated for pervasive coverage and capacity.
• Wi-Fi calling is getting a lot of press lately, especially after the T-Mobile acquisition by AT&T.
• What's Up (or Not) with Convergence? - Network World
• Wi-Fi starts playing a key role in telecom - Buddle Blog
• Mobile broadband the only way forward - ComputerWorld
• T-Mobile Says 5 Million Customers Use Wi-Fi Calling Service - TmoNews
• Three, Two, One, Launch! T-Mobile announced 3 new phones with Wi-Fi Calling. - Kineto
• T-Mobile, AT&T and Me - Kineto
• Wi-Fi Calling for Canada Businesses - Kineto
• The Wi-Fi Alliance announced official support for a hotspot certification program (built on 802.11u). I am disappointed by the initial (sole) focus on cellular carrier operated hotspots. I have a few contacts into the WFA that I am pursuing to get more information.
• Wi-Fi Alliance launches hotspot certification program, aims to ease cell-to-WiFi handoff woes - Engadget
• Wi-Fi Alliance tackles cellular-to-Wi-Fi roaming - FierceWireless
• Unsafe at any SSID: Wireless Hotspot (In)Security - RioSec.
  I highly recommend reading this article. The current carrier focused initiative will leave independent hotspot operators behind, left without a secure solution.
• New Standard Eases Carrier Wi-Fi Access and Roaming - Wi-Fi Net news
• Aruba announced its MOVE unified network architecture which includes wired switches managed by a wireless controller, pushing security to the edge for wired and wireless networks and providing unified management of both platforms.
• Aruba's MOVE Architecture - CWNP
• Aruba strikes down wired, wireless silos - Network World
• Aruba's unified architecture addresses consumerization of IT - SearchNetworking

Comic for the Week!
Zealous Autoconfig - XKCD

Cheers (and happy reading!),
Andrew

Articles Worth Reading: 12/30/2010

Here are a collection of articles from the past week that I have found useful, interesting, or enlightening. As always, for a complete list of articles check out my shared article feed from Google Reader.


Unplugged – Show 4 – Too Many iPads – My Etherealmind: 

"#Content

* 802.11n adoption in the enterprise may be driven by iPads and iPhones today, and Android in the future. This may drive the greater of adoption of wireless networking generally.

* Will the prevalence of personal hotspot devices end up ruining enterprise guest networks? Guest networks are becoming important systems for external consultants and contractors and the wireless networks need to be more reliable. Discussions of some of the challenges around this.

* Fast roaming and why it’s important in an enterprise environment, especially with 802.1x/EAP authentication; forthcoming Wi-Fi Alliance Voice Enterprise certification.

* Keith R Parsons moving to Ruckus."

2010: The Enterprise Wi-Fi Year in Review - www.enterprisenetworkingplanet.com: 

"Thanks to 802.11n, there's a good chance 2010 was the year a wireless LAN became your default network access method. This retrospective from Wi-Fi Planet looks at the major deals, improvements in technology and changes in the market that pushed Wi-Fi ahead in the enterprise."

* I had the honor of contributing to this great article by Lisa Phifer.


Breaking GSM Security With a $15 Phone: 

"Whatever assurances have been given about the security of GSM cellphone calls, forget about them now."

802.11: Safety equipment for outdoor WLAN deployments: 

"Deploying outdoor network is hard. It is hard technology wise. One is bound by the limitations of the technology (the 802.11 standard), regulatory restrictions (FCC and the likes) and the environment itself (buildings, trees, hills, weather changes, etc). And once you have designed the network, you have to deploy the network."

dailywireless.org » AT&T Expands Public WiFi: 

"AT&T will expand Wi-Fi hot spots in New York’s Times Square just ahead of New Year’s celebrations and is also deploying its first hot spots in a public, outdoor area of San Francisco, the Embarcadero waterfront district."

How to Get Your Idea Approved - Amy Gallo - Best Practices - Harvard Business Review: 

"When you have an idea, proposal, or recommendation that you believe in, it's easy to presume that getting it approved will be a breeze. If you see how great the idea is, won't everyone else? However, whether an audience accepts an idea is often less about the idea itself than about how you present it. When you need approval, don't assume that just because it's brilliant, others will see it that way — convince them."

Layer 2 vs Layer 3 in Wireless Mesh: Do You Have to Choose? « Mesh Without Wires: 

"Layer 2 vs Layer 3 benefits and trade-offs have been a topic of discussion for a couple of decades as both approaches have their benefits and drawbacks."

Cheers (and happy reading),
Andrew