Philadelphia¹s Wi-Fi system got a shot in the arm last week when Mayor Michael Nutter announced a new ownership and management agreement between the City, Earthlink, and a new owner, Network Acquisition Company (NAC).

It was welcome news to local activists that have been fighting to save the system, such as the Media Mobilizing Project. But the original vision of Philly Wi-Fi as a way to get poor people on-line appears to have been lost in the negotiations. Now, city leaders will need to figure out how to create a brighter digital future for low-income Philadelphians.

NAC plans to make money by providing wired DSL services to businesses in Philadelphia, then to extend employees¹ access over the wireless system. For example, a pastry maker would use NAC as their high speed Internet provider at the bakery. Employees delivering their goodies to cafés throughout town could communicate new orders back to the bakery over the wireless network.

The Wi-Fi network would also be free to anyone else that could tap into the signal.

At a community forum held by Media Mobilizing Project last week, NAC made it clear we should keep our expectations low. While the company plans to improve the network¹s quality, the signal will not be strong enough to reach most people indoors. NAC will not offer customer service for the free wireless tier, either. If you can figure out how to use it, great. If not, tough cookies.

So, tech savvy laptop users may have a great on-line experience while sipping iced lattes at a sidewalk café during warm weather months. As long as it¹s not too sunny, rendering the screen unreadable. A handful of lucky Philadelphians might find the signal reaches into their homes, particularly when sitting near a window.

But what about the students doing research for a book report? Or a job seeker that is required to fill out an employment application on-line? Or the struggling family that needs to apply for state-provided benefits? For now, most of them will still need to find an open library, and wait an average of 2 hours for their time limited session on line.

It¹s not NAC¹s fault that Philadelphia has failed to deliver on its digital promise. By saving the Earthlink network from the scrap heap, the company saw an opportunity to build a business while providing a valuable free service to consumers. Their business is welcome in Philadelphia, and its success could be good for consumers.

But NAC will benefit from the use of public property, such as access to light poles where Wi-Fi routers are located. That¹s one reason that the company should be held accountable to some higher purpose. At last week¹s forum, NAC was asked to create a Community Advisory Board to engage community leaders on what that higher purpose could entail.

The Nutter Administration has some work to do, too. The Administration must recognize that access to affordable, high quality Internet for all ­ and the technology to use it ­ is a vital part of building a safe, healthy and prosperous city. For a limited number of residents, the Wi-Fi network will be one tool. Now, the Mayor should demonstrate leadership in crafting a digital inclusion agenda that adds other power tools to our digital toolbox.

Congress and the FCC should step up as well, by opening up valuable, higher quality spectrum for unlicensed use. That spectrum exists, and is unused.
Access to it could help Philly¹s Wi-Fi network work indoors.

Over the next few weeks, Media Mobilizing Project and its allies will be engaging NAC, Mayor Nutter, policy makers, and others to craft a digital
inclusion agenda for a 21st Century city. You can help by sharing ideas
for what could be included in that agenda by commenting on this post.