Dwight notes that EarthLink is rethinking its municipal WiFi commitment.
Following a quarter in which it posted a loss of $29.96 million broadband provider EarthLink said it is reviewing four of its Wi-Fi deployments in Philadelphia, Anaheim, Milpitas and New Orleans before deciding if it wants to take on any new projects.The pause for EarthLink could just be momentary. Or it could signal that the push for municipal Wi-Fi deployments could be losing steam if one of it's biggest proponents starts to rethink the whole venture.
EarthLink is "not yet able to establish that comfort level" that the investments are really profitable, Kevin Dotts, EarthLink's chief financial officer told the AP.
Dotts said they will be looking at factors like topography; concentration of households; and alternative revenue opportunities to determine where they might want to continue building. It's likely he said that the company will only pursue large projects in the future such as Chicago.