According to ABI Research, the portion of the Earth covered by municipal Wi-Fi hotspots will reach 126,000 square miles by 2010. That's an area bigger than the entire state of New Mexico! As we mentioned last month, the debate about municipal Wi-Fi still rages on. This month two great articles provide insight into the topic. Information Week's “Down to Business: The Economics of Metro Wi-Fi” points out both pros and cons of municipal Wi-Fi, suggesting that citywide Wi-Fi might make sense for small, underserved rural eras, but not for metropolitan areas, where creating a large hotzone with a high quality signal is virtually impossible. Click here to read the article.

Another article, “Can Muni Wi-Fi Be Free?” in Wi-Fi Planet looks at a new book by Craig Settles, “Fighting the Good Fight for Municipal Wireless: Applying Lessons from Philadelphia's Wi-Fi Story.” Settles recently published a 32-page study that concludes free municipal Wi-Fi is not the great opportunity some people claim. He notes politicians move too quickly on this issue without listing to end-users' needs, and as a result approve Wi-Fi service that doesn't meet up to what their cities actually need. Read the article and download Settles's report.

NWEBbeams was recently featured in an article titled “WEBbeams Becomes Nationwide WiFi Leader with Help from SCORE.” SCORE, founded in 1964, offers current or potential business owners the expertise of experienced businesspeople. The article shows how WEBbeams co-owners Brian Van Lieshout and Chris Olson learned from their SCORE counselor, Larry Pelka, gaining advice as they launched their business and turned their focus to the coffee shop market. To learn more about SCORE and how the organization helped WEBbeams, check out the article here.

If you’ve heard the term VoIP (Voice over IP), but haven’t jumped at the opportunity to use your laptop as a computer, a new phone from D-Link might just pique your interest in VoIP. The new DPH-540 flip-style wireless mobile phone looks like a standard cellular phone, but works instead via 802.11b/g wireless connections. Users can make calls anywhere they find Wi-Fi, and no computer is needed. The phone works with standard wireless internet connections or VoIP service, making calls much cheaper than traditional phone service. If you want to check out a picture of the phone or specs, visit the D-Link website.

WEBbeams' Brian Van Lieshout will be exhibiting at the Fresh Cup Roadshow in St. Louis on May 4th and 5th. If you plan to attend, stop by booth number 313. Also, catch Brian's presentation at noon on Friday. If you'd like a free pass to the event, visit the Fresh Cup website and enter VIP code 0313SL.