HotSpot@Everywhere

Although municipal networks have lost their glossy hype, they are still being built — and they still present an opportunity for consumers to cut down on their cell phone minutes.

Witness Wireless Minneapolis, where US Internet is building a citywide wireless network that has Minneapolis as the anchor tenant. The network, which is being built in phases, also will feature wireless broadband service as an additional perk. The network uses equipment from BelAir Networks.

Even in the early phases, Wireless Minneapolis is providing roaming of sorts for T-Mobile customers with the dual-mode phones acquired to use HotSpot@Home.

“We have checked this out, and HotSpot@Home phones do hand off to the BelAir infrastructure,” said Jim Freeze, senior vice president of marketing and alliances for BelAir. “It is certainly a way to cut cellular costs.”

Freeze believes Wireless Minneapolis will be a role model for other large cities, many of whom — Chicago, Houston and San Francisco — have recently backed away from muni Wi-FI.

The city's primary goals are clear — public safety and economic development — and wireless Internet access is something consumers buy, he said.

“If you want a world-class city, you need a world-class infrastructure, and that includes broadband,” Freeze said.