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Service Providers San Mateo, Calif. - Vendors have launched new initiatives to make
it easier for solution providers to deploy and maintain Wi-Fi hotspots across
the country. Falls Church, Va.-based hotspot vendor Young Design, which said
it already supplies products to about 800 wireless ISPs worldwide, also plans
to provide ongoing technical support to hotspot service providers. The vendor
last week announced a deal with hotspot aggregator Joltage Networks, New York,
to sell discounted long-range Wi-Fi access points and wireless network cards to
hotspot service providers. Other vendors, such as NetNearU, College Station, Texas,
are offering turnkey solutions that provide the hardware and software necessary
to roll out, maintain and maximize network resources. "We provide everything an owner-operator needs to do billing,
user management, network operability and revenue reporting," said Cody
Catalena, executive vice president at NetNearU. NetNearU's solution couples a Gentec access point with a
customer board that runs software to add and manage users on the network,
manage the network, run diagnostics on the network and project revenue, said
Catalena. The company, which has been providing public Internet access via
kiosks in hotels and airports for six years, is using its back-end software to
help other solution providers take advantage of the growing hotspot phenomenon,
he said. NetNearU charges about $500 for the package, or $400 for the
board and software if solution providers want to use a different access point.
The company also takes 25 percent of revenue for billing and management
services. The company currently services about 10 to 15 providers that will
have launched about 100 hotspot locations nationwide, said Catalena. In
addition, NetNearU contracted with hotspot aggregator Boingo Wireless so
that its owner-operators can be part of the nationwide Boingo network. These offers come at a time when Wi-Fi hotspots are rising in
popularity. According to a study from Cahners In-Stat Group, the number of
wireless access points shipped each year will jump to 3.5 million in 2005 from
1.2 million in 2001. The firm estimates that annual wireless networking card
shipments will more than triple to 19.4 million in 2005 from 6.3 million last
year. Craig Plunkett, CEO of CEDX, an East Northport, N.Y.-based
network integrator, said he views hotspots as an opportunity to boost revenue
in a slow market. After the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, Plunkett said several
of his New York-area clients dropped or postponed networking projects, leaving
his firm hurting for business. CEDX chose NetNearU's solution because of the control
available in the software and also because of the company's flexibility,
Plunkett said. CEDX, which has been researching hotspot technology for two
years, has had trouble getting in the door with some other providers, he said. The solution provider now operates four hotspot locations in New
York and is scouting for new high-traffic areas, including one major commuter
rail. "This is going to be more popular than 3G [wireless]
services," Plunkett said. "It has a lower price point and is more
consumer-friendly." Although many analysts agree that hotspots have great potential
to provide high-speed bandwidth services in the United States, Plunkett
acknowledges that business is still slow. "This stuff hasn't spread beyond the core technology
users," he said. But Plunkett believes the technology will eventually take off,
and is hoping to generate at least 50 percent of his company's revenue from its
hotspot locations. "We are hoping this will get us off the billable hour and
consultation treadmill," he said. http://www.crn.com September 16, 2002
Jacque Chrisman Chrisman
Group Public Relations 3409
Executive Center Drive, Suite 120 Austin,
TX 78731 512.345.8969 fax:
512.345.9190 |
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