we should (and can) do it too!
Fred Wilson posted a link to an article by Om Malik about the Mayor of Paris wanting free wireless internet access for all. I lived in Paris for about a year, and I was blown away by how much more reliable (not to mention clean!) the Paris Metro system is compared to the Metro systems in other cities of the word, especially the ones in the US. Add to that the food and wine, and you can understand why Paris remains a top-class city. :-)
Seriously, it doesn’t surprise me that Paris is progressive enough to be pushing a free wireless internet initiative. The only thing that surprises me is that the US is still such a laggard when it comes to major wi-fi/wi-max networks covering our cities. Yes, I realize there are initiatives in a few select cities, but there aren’t as many as there should be. The bureaucratic red tape and strangleholds by the old world Telcos are holding us back in a big way.
On that note, I’m happy to report that my idea in the SinceSlicesBread.com competition has been selected as one of the 21 finalists: Blanket The US With Wireless Access. Not only because there are cash prizes for the winning 3 ideas, but also because the winning idea will be pursued by the competition sponsors in an attempt to bring it to fruition and make it a reality.
The public picks the winners. So please visit the competition website to learn more about the competition, review the 21 finalists, and vote for your favorite 3 ideas: SinceSlicedBread.com