Free broadband wireless Internet is now available in downtown Madison. Monday afternoon, Cellnet Technology Inc. mounted its first transmitter to the traffic signal pole at the corner of Main Street and Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard.
Cellnet will install a wireless network at no cost to the city, but subscribers will ultimately have to pay for wireless access. Once all the transmitters are installed, Cellnet is planning to contract with local Internet Service Providers so only their customers can gain access to the network.
According to Cellnet spokesperson Eve Galanter, use of the network will be free until individual ISPs sign up subscribers.
George Twigg, spokesperson for Mayor Dave Cieslewicz, praised the newly implemented network.
'It will bring a lot of benefits to the community,' Twigg said. 'If you are a student it will enable you to be connected wherever you are in the city.'
Although the current wireless network only reaches the downtown area, Twigg said the rest of the city would soon have access.
'Initially it will cover just the downtown area,' Twigg said. 'But we hope to see it expand citywide eventually.'
In addition to students, Twigg said visitors and other local residents would benefit from citywide wireless.
'Business travelers who are in the city for a day can basically buy a day pass for internet access, or if they have to go to meetings and are going to be working in an office, they can have a connection,' Twigg said.
The currently free network may affect local businesses that already offer internet use. The Starbucks on the Captiol Square, 1 E. Main St., currently offers wireless access for a fee.
However, a Starbucks employee who wished to remain anonymous said she was not worried about Starbucks losing business as a result of citywide WiFi.
'We are charging for WiFi, and other people probably love the fact that they don't have to pay for it,' she said. 'But that's only lasting for a little bit.'
'As far as how it's going to affect our business at Starbucks, everyone just kind of comes here regardless of what it is we have to offer,' the Starbucks employee said.
Within the next few weeks, wireless transmitters will extend to the near east and near west sides of Madison, including the airport, with the intention of completion for the end of March.
At that point, ISPs will begin charging subscription fees to wireless users. Until then, the network will be open to Madison residents free of charge.
