Broadband picture not finished

BROADBAND PICTURE NOT FINISHED
[SOURCE: Chicago Tribune, AUTHOR: Jon Van]
A Q&A with Chris O'Brien, who once served as Chicago's chief information officer. Chicago's decision last month to back away from building a citywide wireless broadband network was correct and should be followed by a full assessment of how to promote broadband connectivity, both wired and wireless, said O'Brien. He issued a report last week suggesting that the preoccupation with municipal Wi-Fi systems that has spread across the country mostly misses the point. Even though an estimated 450 cities have either launched such systems or are studying them, few have done the spadework necessary to produce a comprehensive broadband strategy, the report finds. This would include doing an inventory to determine which areas of a city are underserved with high-speed Internet and assessing a city's goals in promoting broadband.
http://www.chicagotribune.com/business/chi-sun_frontsep09,0,948716.story...