Open-Access Networks Make Smart Cities Viable

Open-access networks could revolutionize the US broadband industry for consumers and for the municipalities in which they operate. When utilized to its maximum capacity, a fiber network can provide the backbone to economic development and improved quality of life for residents and deliver a full array of smart-city applications that enable a city to become more efficient, environmentally friendly, and desirable to prospective residents and businesses. Many cities want fiber networks to support smart-city applications. But the cost of building a network to support only smart-city applications is seldom justified. Municipalities predominantly use technology to reduce costs – not capture additional revenue – and, as a result, creating viable business cases for them is immensely challenging. In contrast, by using an independently operated network, a city is able to use profits from one revenue stream to subsidize municipal usage on a large scale. This completely removes connectivity as a barrier to creating smart cities. Numerous smart-city applications are already available, and more will be added as technology evolves. From traffic monitoring to reduce congestion to monitoring storm drains to reduce flooding, there are applications for every need. SiFi Networks allows municipalities to access its networks to implement smart-city applications, enabling cities to become more efficient and increase the quality of life for residents.

[Ben Bawtree-Jobson is the CEO of SiFi Networks]