Wireless Philadelphia has selected a vendor for their $20 million city-wide wireless network that will offer every citizen high-speed data connectivity, reports Philly.com, Muniwireless and Times-Tribune.
Err, actually, they selected TWO – one team headed by Earthlink and one headed by Hewlett-Packard.
Philadelphia chose both Earthlink and HP to negotiate a contract, pursuing dual negotiations with these companies to determine the best business terms before picking a winner and proceeding to final contract. Both Earthlink and HP plan to use Tropos gear.
The public-private non-profit agency solicited bids and reduced the finalists to three bidders earlier this year. They were:
- AT&T partnered with Lucent Technologies and BelAir Networks.
- Earthlink with Motorola Canopy and Tropos.
- Hewlett-Packard with Aptilo Networks, Alvarion, Business Information Group and Tropos.
Dianah Neff, the city’s chief information officer and chief architect of Wireless Philadelphia, said both proposals peg the cost of building and maintaining the network for the first two years at between $15 million and $18 million.
Hewlett-Packard and Earthlink have proposed different financing options, Neff said, which involve a combination of bonds, leases and private investment. No taxpayer money would be used, she said. Construction, which would involve the installation of about 3,000 wireless transmitters atop streetlights, would likely start at the end of next month and take about a year to complete.
Meanwhile, Wireless Philadelphia will get another boost today when the world’s largest chipmaker, Intel, announces that Philly will be one of 13 cities worldwide in the company’s new “Digital Communities” initiative. Intel has also helped Wireless Philadelphia develop technical requirements for its network.
Bridging the Digital Divide is one of goals. In West Philadelphia, the People’s Emergency Center uses donated computers from a local law firm, then sells them to residents for $120, trains them and provides wireless Internet access for the first year for $5 a month.
The organization expects to pick the winner in about 30 days and then move into final contractual negotiations, said Neff, the city’s chief information officer.
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