Ed Mahern, Indiana State Representative, District 97, Indianapolis
co-author of Indiana's muni-broadband regulator House Bill #1148

Intel Corporation, long a leader in the manufacture and sale of the core CPUs that power personal computers and, more recently, a leader in the development and deployment of Wi-Fi technologies for laptop computers, has now gone from working behind the scenes to working publicly to encourage public policies it believes are conducive to maximum wireless penetration.

Part of that public effort is today's Broadband Wireless Access World interview with Mark O. Miller, an Intel spokesperson based in Sacramento, California.

In that interview Mr. Miller discusses the technology involved in both Wi-Fi and WiMAX systems, explaining that while Wi-Fi can create "hot spots" of wireless Internet connectivity, WiMAX can produce much larger "hot zones" where "clouds" of Internet access are present and available for users.

Speaking of the more powerful WiMAX technology, he said that standards are now being developed for a mobile version of WiMAX (by the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers [IEEE]) that could enable its widespread deployment by 2008.

On the issue of muni-broadband, the expansion of wireless broadband connectivity facilitated by city governments, Mr. Miller, on behalf of Intel, suggested that the best way to proceed would be between the extremes, through a policy that allowed maximum flexibility and competition between and among private and public entities to speed broadband wireless deployment.

He spoke against legislated bans on municipal involvement in the broadband deployment process, saying that cities ought to be able to specify what they want by way of broadband access for their residents (for example, the provision of 1Mbps wireless connectivity at a price point of $30-40 per month) and then allow private companies of all sizes to respond with their own proposals for implementing such a level of service.

In the event that no private entities offer to provide such a service level at the specified price point, then, according to Mr. Miller, it might be appropriate for cities to offer subsidies to make that possible.

He also said that it could be appropriate for cities to sell bonds to raise funds to support the deployment of wireless networks.

Overall, the model that he said Intel favors is one that involves both the private and public sectors, working together to provide the broadband access that is essential for domestic and global competitiveness. What Intel wants to do, he said, is help to find a "middle ground" that would maximize broadband rollout.

Mr. Miller said that Intel is working through its customers, sales force, and lobbyists in Washington, D.C., and elsewhere to encourage legislatures not to pass bans on municipal involvement in the provision of wireless broadband services. He said that 17 pieces of legislation that would impose limitations on muni-broadband are now pending in state legislatures around the country.

You can hear Intel spokesperson Mark O. Miller' remarks about Wi-Fi and WiMAX technology and about Intel's position on facilitating their deployment in wireless broadband municipal networks, by clicking here.