Who's More Capable?
Pitting Government Against Private Business

"Why is our free-enterprise system so strong? Not because it stands still, frozen in the past, but because it has always adapted to changing realities"
- Lee Iacocca

One phenomenon that has grown out of a perceived death in private sector offerings, particularly in lower-income areas, is the formation of broadband networks funded and constructed by city and county governments. While such networks have been in existence for several years, the explosion of wireless networking options has created a fresh flood of municipal systems, and has some worried about the meddling of governments in the free economy.

Municipal wireless networks are either a reality or on the way in communities all across the US, from major metropolitan areas like Philadelphia and Denver to smaller communities like Brandon, VT and Washtenaw County, MI. This is part of a global trend that has impacted cities from Hong Kong to Liverpool to Auckland. However, there has been a fair amount of dissent in the United States regarding the impact of government-subsidized wireless networks on the private sector. The very public struggle that took place in Philadelphia between the city government and Verizon Communications ultimately resulted in Verizon relenting on its opposition to the city’s plans to build a 135 sq. mi. network. Verizon, arguably, won the war in spite of losing that battle as the Pennsylvania state legislature passed a bill allowing ILEC’s to veto municipal network plans by making comparable networking options available within a reasonable timeframe. Governor Jeb Bush has signed a similar bill into law in Florida.

On a national level, other such anti-municipal network legislation has been introduced into Congress by Rep. Pete Sessions (R-TX), which would effectively regulate the introduction of government-subsidized networks into areas where competitive services already exist. On the other side of the issue, Senator John McCain (R-AZ), ever the rogue, has introduced legislation to protect municipal networks. Oddly enough, both sides claim to be acting in the interest of preserving competition, whether the implied monopolizing force is private industry or governmental interference.

One group that is not entirely stratified about the issue of municipal wireless networks is the wireless hardware community. Steve Byers, vice president of marketing for Axerra Networks, notes that the United States is sliding in its ability to offer networks to end users compared to many other world markets. “We’re not trying to align ourselves with one type of SP or another,” Byers says, noting that Axerra supports any effort to extend service to the underserved.

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