"This is a market-driven model that allows every resident, business and visitor the opportunity to have high-speed broadband access, anywhere in our city -- turning Anaheim into a truly unwired city," said Anaheim Mayor Curt Pringle, who introduced the idea at his 2005 State of the City address.
Under the proposal, EarthLink would receive an exclusive franchise to mount, install, operate and maintain certain of its equipment in areas approved by Anaheim on certain streetlight poles and traffic signal poles. It would utilize Anaheim's fiber to connect certain radio antennas to its Internet point of presence to create a privately owned and operated citywide broadband wireless network. EarthLink will use a Wi-Fi mesh networking system from Tropos Networks to implement ubiquitous coverage over the city.
Unlike other municipal models that have been proposed recently, the Anaheim-EarthLink agreement, if approved, would be the first public-private wireless broadband franchise that grants a private entity the ability to create, implement and maintain a citywide Wi-Fi network.
The city will allow EarthLink to use certain city facilities within the public rights-of-way to create the wireless network. EarthLink will utilize the city's streetlight and traffic signal poles to mount Tropos MetroMesh routers. The end result will be high-speed wireless connectivity to the Internet from anywhere in the city for individuals who have contracted with the franchisee. EarthLink will have control over the actual rates charged and the services offered, as dictated by the customers.
EarthLink will pay Anaheim a pole attachment fee, the cost of consumed electricity and a lease payment for fiber connections used. The city of Anaheim also will be allowed access to the EarthLink network at a discounted rate in order to enhance service delivery and to create redundancy for the city's own wireless network. The city has already begun deployment of its specific Wi-Fi system for its public safety and field operations personnel. Funded by the Department of Homeland Security's Urban Area Security Initiative, it will allow access to systems now only viewable from an office computer, empowering Anaheim field personnel with information previously unavailable.
The city's objectives are to create a citywide system that provides adequate coverage; competitive rates through market competition; frequent technology upgrades; aesthetic deployment; minimization of city expense and involvement.
