FON and the new Wi-Fi mobile revolution that Google and Skype are financing
March 23, 06 by DiegoSome of you might have heard about FON, the company created by the entrepreneur Martin Varsavsky. If you have not, well, he basically wants to provide wireless internet access in every possible corner of the planet with the help of a rapidly growing FON community.
The foneros (members of the community) will have the option to choose between earning money when they share their internet access or having a roaming service for free wherever FON is available.
His numbers are impressive. Even though he is just starting with the project and there were no massive marketing campaigns so far, there are already more than 25 000 members spread throughout the world.
Why did both Google and Skype put money into this project?
The answer is kind of obvious, with all the new WiFi handhelds, laptops, smart-phones etc etc. WiFi access is and will be THE way to be connected.
Now imagine this situation: you share your ADSL connection at home through the FON network so if you are going, let’s say, to a different country or to a different city you could theoretically (if the network is available there) use your smart-phone or handheld to make a phone call for free using Skype for mobiles. You could even check how to get to your hotel using Google maps, all for free or at a very very low cost.
I really hope to see my mobile phone with a broadband connection and at reasonable prices. This seemed impossible a few months ago but so far, it looks like they are going to make it possible.