COPS ON THE GO: Municipal wireless networks provide on-the-spot broadband
Internet access to help police and emergency personnel respond
quickly to accidents and other dangerous situations

The current projects in China, however, are "wireless cities in a narrow sense," said Zeng Jianqiu, a professor at Beijing University of Post and Telecommunications, in a Xinhua News Agency report. They provide wireless Internet access only via WiMax or Wi-Fi technology in areas without 3G network coverage.

Apart from the WiMax and Wi-Fi wireless network, China has built up a TD-SCDMA-based 3G network, which enables Internet access for 3G cellphones. China Mobile Communication Corp. announced on August 30 that it would expand its TD-SCDMA network to cover 38 cities and offer commercial services via the network next June. The wireless city projects will not rival 3G services but rather complement them, because the wireless city networks will not provide voice services, Xie said.

The omnipresence of Internet access lets residents surf the Internet via laptops or handheld PDAs in streets, parks or vehicles, overcoming physical restrictions such as buildings, bandwidth and signal coverage. Wireless broadband networks in cities provide real-time and on-the-spot access for the municipal government, public security services and transportation authorities. They help government departments to respond quickly to emergencies and deliver timely services.

Many cities, especially international metropolises, want to create wireless cities in part to narrow the "digital gap" among their citizens, said Wu Wei, President of Azalea Networks (Beijing) Ltd., in a Xinhua News Agency report. Many mayors believe that a wireless city will enable them to perfect the information environment, stimulate commerce and enhance local competitiveness in information efficiency. Azalea Networks is one of the equipment suppliers to Beijing's WiCity project.

Business is business

Although there has been demand for municipal wireless networks around the globe, a four-year wireless city campaign worldwide has failed to yield any commercial successes so far. A mature operation mode is key to the success of a wireless city project, Chen said.

CECT-Chinacomm, for example, does not have its own backbone network and has to pay high rental rates to a couple of telecom infrastructure operators to supply it. Many of the company's costs consist of these expenses; and renting 20-gigabyte bandwidth costs it approximately 200 billion yuan ($29.4 billion) a year, Xie said.

The company also has had to invest huge amounts in wireless network construction. CECT-Chinacomm has poured nearly 100 billion yuan ($14.7 billion) in the first construction phase of Beijing's WiCity project, Xie said. Its investments in the second and third phases would reach 500 billion yuan ($73.5 billion) and 1 trillion yuan ($147 billion), respectively, he said.

But the company will see no returns on these investments for some time. During the Beijing Olympics, it offered wireless network access service free of charge. Xie said CECT-Chinacomm would start charging users for the service after the sports event, offering four choices: 0.12 yuan (less than 2 cents) per minute, 20 yuan ($3) a day, 60 yuan ($8.80) for five days, and 80 yuan ($11.80) for a month.

"It's not cheap for a service with a network coverage of only 100 square km," said telecommunications expert Xiang Ligang, in a blog post. He believes CECT-Chinacomm knows it cannot make money by charging users for services but hopes to receive financing backed by government credit to continue expanding Beijing's wireless city network and build networks in other major cities. Government support is necessary for the smooth construction of wireless city projects, Xiang said.

The wireless network project under construction in the Jiading District of Shanghai, for example, is one where CECT-Chinacomm is cooperating with the local government. The company is responsible for the investment in and construction of all network base stations and will be the network's sole operator. In return, the local government has promised to purchase part of the company's services to ensure CECT-Chinacomm recovers some of its investment.