Share
Facebook
Twitter
LinkedIn
Flipboard
Print
Email

Democracy & Technology Blog Why muni Wi-Fi networks fail

Hance Haney
March 29, 2009
Municipal Wi-Fi Networks

A paper by James Valvo published by Americans For Prosperity notes,

Easily the biggest problem with municipal projects is that they commit taxpayer money to projects that nearly always run over budget for construction, are not financially sustainable once they are built and rely on future subsidies to provide so-called “free service.” As is always the case when governments enter the free market, distortions in price, customer service and availability hinder competition and ruin what could otherwise be a profitable
venture.

See: Municipal Broadband’s Record of Failure: A Profile in Market Intrusion.

Hance Haney

Director and Senior Fellow of the Technology & Democracy Project
Hance Haney served as Director and Senior Fellow of the Technology & Democracy Project at the Discovery Institute, in Washington, D.C. Haney spent ten years as an aide to former Senator Bob Packwood (OR), and advised him in his capacity as chairman of the Senate Communications Subcommittee during the deliberations leading to the Telecommunications Act of 1996. He subsequently held various positions with the United States Telecom Association and Qwest Communications. He earned a B.A. in history from Willamette University and a J.D. from Lewis and Clark Law School in Portland, Oregon.