Municipal Wireless Networks Hit Roadblocks

If New Orleans can put together its own wireless Internet network, why haven’t more other cities done the same? The answer, it turns out, is simple: Cable operators and phone companies aren’t too keen on the idea.

Already, the companies have successfully lobbied a number of states to pass laws banning municipal networking projects. Now New Orleans officials say that the BellSouth Corporation, a regional phone-service provider, was so upset by the city’s wireless-networking plan that the company has rescinded an offer to donate one of its damaged buildings to the city’s police force. (The Washington Post)