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EuroWire – March 2009
40
Transat lant ic Cable
Internet by Wi-Fi, the magazine also measures the number of
public wireless Internet hot spots in each city. According to data
evaluated in January, Seattle is the most broadband-connected
city in the country. High marks in two other wired-city categories
– broadband access and Wi-Fi hot spots – helped the rainy city in
the Pacific Northwest clinch the top spot. Elizabeth Woyke wrote
on forbes.com (22
nd
January) that, although Atlanta – top wired
city in 2007 and 2008 – had dropped to No 2, the Southeast
telecommunications hub “boasts plenty of broadband users and
. . . service providers.”
Washington DC “rocketed” from No 11 last year to a solid No 3.
Ms Woyke wrote, “DC scoops up another honour this year
as the wired city to watch, thanks to technophile president
Barack Obama. Obama’s support for universal broadband and
fluency with mobile devices is expected to boost Internet and
Wi-Fi access nationwide. Results could appear in the president’s
home city soon.” Rounding out the top five wired cities
are Orlando and Boston. Forbes noted that, as the location
of Walt Disney World, the destination of millions of tourists a
year, Orlando is packed with broadband providers and
Wi-Fi access points.
Boston’s strengths include “a plethora of universities and urbane
population that help keep its broadband and Wi-Fi usage
high.” The surprise of the list is Minneapolis, which improved
its standing from No 11 to No 7, beating out New York and
Portland, Oregon, among others. The Minnesota city’s secret:
“a particularly broad range of service providers, including a
number of neighbourhoods with 20 different access options for
high-speed Internet.”
Elsewhere in telecom . . .
❈
Cellphones, made available to Cubans scarcely a year
ago, have taken hold quickly on the island. Cuba’s telephone
company ETECSA reports 330,000 mobile phone users among
a population of 11.4 million. Prices for mobile connection have
already been lowered. Even so, cellphone service represents a
considerable outlay in a country whose hard-currency income
has been sharply reduced by falling export prices, especially
for nickel. The 50
th
anniversary of the Cuban revolution, on
1
st
January, featured warnings from President Raúl Castro of
greater economic hardship ahead.
Dorothy Fabian – USA Editor