Politics & Government
Mountain View Readies to Ditch Free Google WiFi in City Buildings
Google gifted the city free WiFi services in 2006, but city officials will shut down the free wireless system amid widespread complaints of outages.
Mountain View officials have apparently decided that even at no cost, WiFi services provided to the city by Google aren't delivering enough bang for the buck.
The city will shut down free WiFi services in city buildings in favor of a new wireless internet system at the cost of $130,000 over five years, the Mountain View Voice reports.
The Internet behemoth gifted its hometown free wireless services in 2006, equipping hundreds of light poles with wireless nodes, the report said.
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But city officials say complaints of haphazard service have compelled them to replace the system in city buildings.
"We started to get a lot of complaints," Mountain View Internet Technology Manager Steve Rodriguez told the Voice.
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"We generally get (complaints) in the library. From what I can tell it's pretty much not working anymore. We get asked a lot, 'What is going on with the Google wireless?'"
His reply: "I don't know."
Rodriguez said the new WiFi services are expected to be up and running in the library by next month. followed by installations at City Hall, the Community Center at Rengstorff Park, among other city buildings, soon to follow, according to the report.
