Fon, Starbucks and T-Mobile’s nemesis, and Time Warner Cable (TWC) have partnered to offer Wi-Fi services across TWC’s footprint. Fon, based in Spain, has created a Wi-Fi based business model that turns Wi-Fi routers into public access ports. Their model then offers Internet access through these public ports at reduced rates of $2-$3 per day. Fon gained earlier notoriety for targeting Starbucks locations by encouraging neighbors of these establishments to launch public Wi-Fi hotspots at a fraction of the costs offered by Starbucks Wi-Fi services (which is powered by T-Mobile). TWC apparently thinks the Fon model has legs, because they now want to make it available to their 6 million plus broadband subs.
Read this AP article on the WTOP News site for more details.
