Google's Tangled Wireless Push

The hurdles Google faces as it becomes involved in building citywide Wi-Fi networks. Building infrastructure and acting as a service provider isn't something with which Google has much experience. Already Google is facing hurdles in the slow-moving, very political process of building what some perceive as a public service. To start with, Google's local advertising revenue from the network won't come anywhere close to the estimated $15 million in infrastructure costs. That's because neither the technology nor business model is yet in place to start driving a location-based advertising economy around local businesses. First Google must overcome the layers of bureaucracy surrounding city politics and the real-world intricacies of building a citywide network. The search giant, which prides itself on its 'bottom-up' innovation process and flexible approach to development, now has to contend with hiring union workers for network construction and attending endless meetings with public committees and review boards.
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