Sprint gets into Wi-Fi game

Longtime readers of this newsletter will remember an issue I've discussed regarding wireless carriers' plans to get into wireless LAN (a.k.a. Wi-Fi) hot spots. My thoughts on this have flip-flopped on occasion.

I first said carriers deploying high-speed wireless data networks (a.k.a. 3G) may get worried if most of the users of wireless data are located at a Wi-Fi hot spot with their laptops. But, perhaps aggravated at the somewhat slow speed of deployment of said hot spots, I've thought that wireless carriers probably didn't need to worry that much, as in a few years higher speed wireless WANs would be able to approach the speeds of Wi-Fi, at a much, much larger range.

Still, this hasn't stopped many carriers from getting into the Wi-Fi game - T-Mobile has invested lots of money into the former MobileStar, and has a network of Starbucks coffee shops all rigged up with Wi-Fi. Verizon Wireless earlier this year announced agreements with hot-spot provider Wayport to provide Wi-Fi access to Verizon Wireless customers.

To continue reading, register here and become an Insider. You'll get free access to premium content from CIO, Computerworld, CSO, InfoWorld, and Network World. See more Insider content or sign in.

Longtime readers of this newsletter will remember an issue I've discussed regarding wireless carriers' plans to get into wireless LAN (a.k.a. Wi-Fi) hot spots. My thoughts on this have flip-flopped on occasion.

I first said carriers deploying high-speed wireless data networks (a.k.a. 3G) may get worried if most of the users of wireless data are located at a Wi-Fi hot spot with their laptops. But, perhaps aggravated at the somewhat slow speed of deployment of said hot spots, I've thought that wireless carriers probably didn't need to worry that much, as in a few years higher speed wireless WANs would be able to approach the speeds of Wi-Fi, at a much, much larger range.

Still, this hasn't stopped many carriers from getting into the Wi-Fi game - T-Mobile has invested lots of money into the former MobileStar, and has a network of Starbucks coffee shops all rigged up with Wi-Fi. Verizon Wireless earlier this year announced agreements with hot-spot provider Wayport to provide Wi-Fi access to Verizon Wireless customers.

Now comes news from Sprint, which also announced a service with Wayport. Sprint said it plans to offer PCS Wi-Fi Access, a high-speed wireless data service. Through Sprint-operated Wi-Fi Zones, and roaming agreements with other companies, Sprint said it plans to offer the service in more than 800 locations later this summer and over 2,100 by year-end.

Sprint customers will be able to receive new PCS Connection Manager software that detects Wi-Fi networks that are compatible with the Sprint service. The software also lets users access a directory, kept current with over-the-air updates, of the latest list of Wi-Fi Zones that work with the Sprint service.

Customers who use Sprint's PCS Connection Card by AirPrime PC3200 for the PCS Vision network will also receive software that manages the PCS Vision and WLAN connectivity, Sprint says. In addition to Wayport, Sprint is working with Airpath Wireless for credit card authentication, customer service and end user management services.

With Sprint entering the Wi-Fi scene, this means pretty much every major U.S. wireless carrier now has some stake in Wi-Fi. While analysts and others (myself included) continue to argue whether Wi-Fi in public hot spots has a viable future, the carriers at least are hedging their bets on their own high-speed networks by getting involved in the market.

It doesn't really matter to me in the end whether the Wi-Fi networks or the 3G networks "win" in the marketplace - for me, the end result is to make sure that a mobile worker has the best available network in order to get their e-mail, download a work order or upload customer data in a more productive fashion. It's actually good to see the carriers working with the Wi-Fi providers instead of against them, as cooperation certainly benefits the end users.

Here's a quick list of some Wi-Fi location finders, if you happen to be traveling around and are looking for a Wi-Fi hot spot:

* Wayport: http://www.wayport.com/locations
* T-Mobile: http://locations.hotspot.t-mobile.com/
* AT&T Wireless GoPort Locations: http://www.attws.com/business/data/individual/goport/hotspots.jhtml
* Wi-Fi Alliance Wi-Fi Zone locator: http://www.wi-fizone.org/zoneLocator.asp?TID=7
* Boingo Wireless: http://www.boingo.com/search.html

Read more about wireless & mobile in Network World's Wireless & Mobile section.