IP Convergence: Beyond VoIP, Beyond Cost Savings

Now I love the concept of free Wif-Fi as much as the next consumer, but with the announcement that Google and Earthlink have been selected to build San Francisco’s “free” city-wide Wi-Fi network, here is an interesting question. Can the hotel industry, coffee houses, and other non-carriers who charge for Internet access file a 5th Amendment takings case against the city? If I was generating revenue from Internet access and the city came along and offered it for free, I would have a problem with that. The question is whether there has been due process of law. I am not sure the City bid process and approval by the Board of Supervisors constitutes sufficient process, but I am sure there will be a challenge raised at some point.

Incumbent carriers appear to be accepting of this situation, but that could be because they are looking at this through the prism of municipal competition. And with a looming battle over video franchises, incumbent carriers may be holding back or risk being perceived as too much of a bully against the poor municipalities.

But what about the small business owner who just had his business plan undermined because the city decided to offer Wi-Fi for free? I am sure that by the time San Francisco gets it Wi-Fi network operational, a host of lawyers will be lining up to demand compensation for their clients’ loss of revenue.

Oh, and if a battery of lawyers clamoring for compensation isn't enough, I wouldn’t be surprised to see a rise in identity theft correlating to the introduction of free city-wide Wi-Fi as unsuspecting consumers connect up and expose their home computers to hackers. Over-burdened by the deluge of criminal complaints, San Francisco may soon see what a tangled web Wi-Fi can weave.