February 5th, 2006
Google, Skype and FON
Google and Skype have said they will be helping fund FON — a global WI-FI network that is comprised of Linus, Bill and Alien users. Right now, FON only has software available for "Linus" users — those who can connect to networks created by other Linus members for free as long as they share their own. This creates a network of users who share each others Internet connection — minus leechers.
Bills are users who prefer to keep a percentage of the fees that FON charges to Aliens — people who pay to access networks participating in the FON movement. The software for these types of users is not yet available, but should be within the next few months.
There is some concern that ISP’s will find participants in violation with the terms of service. Most ISP’s have clauses which prohibit sharing internet connections outside the household. FON responds to these concerns in advance by providing this statement:
FON is not an Internet service provider (“ISP”). As a matter of fact, in order for someone to become a member of the FON Community, he/she must first have a broadband connection contracted through a provider. For this very reason, FON actively encourages and drives broadband adoption. This means that FON does not compete with access providers. Rather, FON is great news for ISPs. With FON, ISPs can bring more value to what they offer customers by providing broadband at home and offering access when away from home.
This could have some great potential as long as ISP’s see the same value in this service as the users would. Unfortunately, I’m sure that task will not be easy, but I’m looking forward to see how much progress FON can make in the near future.
Garett Rogers is employed as a programmer for iQmetrix, which specializes in retail management software for the wireless industry.
See his full profile and disclosure of his industry affiliations.
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