Municipal wireless networks are expected to spring up en masse over the next three years with US cities expected to spend up to $700 million setting them up, according to Om Malik and friend Esme Vos, who provides the details after speaking with officials in the public and private sectors.
Between 2004 and 2007, the municipal wireless (Muniwireless) market in the US is expected to grow by 134%, exceeding $400 million by 2007. Vos gleans her numbers from her 2005 Municipal Wireless State of the Market Report, researched and written in collaboration with Microcast Communications.
A summary of the study’s predictions (to be detailed more at a conference later this week):
Muniwireless growth is expected to double every year for the next three years in cities with populations over 500,000 and those with less than 100,000.
Public safety (police, fire, emergency services) is the top reason for deploying a citywide wireless network.
As the next few years will focus on building up infrastructures, vendors offering these types of services will be in high demand, as will applications developers.
Industry wireless standards, such as choosing WiFi or WiMax over other technologies, will be an important market driver as more cities and technology vendors pick their favorites.
Vos says the study is based upon personal interviews with municipal IT executives, elected officials, and municipal department heads.
Cities that have already begun muniwireless efforts are San Francisco, Portland, and Philadelphia. Vos says it is unclear what impact companies like Microsoft, Cisco, Google, and Intel will have, but I think its safe to say that impact will be huge.
