AT&T; Teams with MetroFi to Bid on City Wi-Fi Contract

AT&T and Wi-Fi start-up MetroFi submitted a proposal to build and operate a wireless broadband network in Riverside, California. The proposed network would provide free Internet access throughout the city with download speeds of 500Kbps and upload speeds of 256Kbps. AT&T will include a persistent advertisement on every Web page in exchange for the free access and proposed offering a paid service to Riverside residents allowing them to subscribe to a 1Mbps download broadband service.

When cities began looking into building Wi-Fi networks, phone and cable companies like AT&T, Comcast and Time Warner lobbied against them. They feared that cities owning and operating Wi-Fi networks would allow them to unfairly control the market. But now that many cities are considering partnerships with private firms, those same companies are beginning to bid for the chance to build the networks.

Read more about the bid at CNETnews.com.