Opinion

our opinion

August 9, 2008

Wilkes-Barre’s Wi-Fi connects city to future

A couple of years ago city officials nationwide hailed low-cost or free Wi-Fi service as a way to help nearly everyone get connected.

But overly ambitious plans and technological glitches forced plans to be dropped or shelved. Some of the most ambitious on the Wi-Fi grid – most notably in Philadelphia – had to unplug. Provider EarthLink could not make it work financially.

Thankfully, that is not the case 100 miles to the north in Wilkes-Barre. Here the Diamond City has a gem of a deal through the nonprofit corporation Wire Free Wilkes-Barre.

The partnership -- King’s College, Wilkes University, Luzerne County government and Wilkes-Barre city -- contracted with Frontier Communications Solutions to provide service. That’s fitting, since Frontier has an office on Public Square, and companies it purchased have had a Northeastern Pennsylvania presence for decades.

By all accounts, the Wi-Fi service is meeting expectations 10 months after going live.

The service is not free, nor is it profitable yet for the provider. Rather, Frontier charges a variety of fees, including a modest $30 monthly rate.

As expected, service is most heavily used around the anchor tenants, and nearly all of Wilkes-Barre is within range..

This achievement is noteworthy in two respects.

One, the service is reliable and all involved – including the provider – are satisfied. In Philadelphia, it was EarthLink that pulled the plug because it was losing around $200,000 a month, according to the Philadelphia Inquirer.

Secondly, its success establishes the framework for more technology that will enhance life in the city and its image beyond. Through the wireless service, the city now has a modest network of security cameras downtown that police can monitor. Plans call for installation of a total of 500 cameras eventually.

The possibilities that a Wi-Fi network brings are only limited by the imagination of those who live and work in the community.

Here the Diamond City has a gem

of a deal through the nonprofit corporation Wire Free Wilkes-Barre.

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