Report: Google to close SF muni-wireless deal

According to a report in MarketWatch, Google and Earthlink are "very close" to finalizing the terms for the city-wide San Francisco municipal wireless network. Once Google and EarthLink work things out, the city still needs to approve the contract terms, so while the report claims an announcement could drop this week there are still a few more hurdles ahead. The two companies have negotiated the deal for more than nine months.

The proposed network calls for two offerings: A free, high-speed network supported by Google's AdSense and a second, faster and commercial-free Internet service that will retail for $20 a month. San Francisco picked the Google-EarthLink venture for its network in April. Google has since launched a similar free and ad-supported network in its hometown of Mountain View, CA.

For more on the the SF muni-wireless network:
- read this article [1] from MarketWatch

Related Article:
> EarthLink's president and CEO Garry Betty passed away yesterday due to complications from cancer at age 49. Article [2]