by Mike Sharkey
Staff Writer
Jacksonville is finally well on its way to being totally wired for the Internet. Well, sort of.
According to Leo Cyr, president and COO of Clearwire, much of Jacksonville residentially isn’t Internet capable and many of Jacksonville’s small to medium-sized businesses aren’t able to receive cable or DSL Internet service. The answer is Clearwire, a national wireless Internet provider based in Dallas.
Cyr said Clearwire chose Jacksonville as its first major market outside Dallas for several reasons.
“We saw it as a great market,” said Cyr from a rented RV Clearwire is using to demonstrate its wireless, mobile Internet capabilities. “It’s a large market with competition from Broadband. We figured if we could be successful here, we could be successful elsewhere.
“There is forward thinking in the City government and it’s interested in telecommunications issues. And, the Chamber is active.”
There are several areas of Jacksonville currently designated as wireless Internet zones, namely City Hall and the Landing. What differentiates those areas from Clearwire is mobility. Using a transmitter the size of a palm pilot or radio/cassette player, Clearwire customers can use the Internet and related services from every room in the house or office and even in a moving car.
More than anything else, Clearwire is also able to offer Internet access at a much faster speed than dial-up Internet access.
“This is 50 times faster than dial-up,” said Cyr.
Jacksonville was chosen as the pilot for Clearwire over about 30 other cities. The company conducted an initial screening process and after four months narrowed the list to just a few other cities.
“Jacksonville was one of the cities in the focus group,” said Cyr, explaining that Clearwire asked several citizens and small businesses to use the service for a designated length of time. “We also talked to City Council and the Chamber about telecommunications growth in the area.”
Clearwire may be a hit locally. According to a pre-market study conducted by Clearwire, 50 percent of the small and medium-sized businesses and 20 percent of the residential homes in Jacksonville physically can’t receive Broadband. For those businesses and residents, Clearwire may be their only option.
“This is an opportunity to provide Internet service to the underserved market,” said Cyr.
In August, Clearwire established a full-time presence in Jacksonville with an office in Southpoint. They have hired two full-time sales reps, four contracted sales reps and are in the process of hiring a technician.
“We were fully operational by the end of October and began with test customers in November,” said Cyr. “Within two months we had launched our commercial operation.”
Cost-wise, Clearwire is competitive with Broadband. Although more expensive than dial-up, Cyr said the speed, security and customer service make up for the higher cost. After an initial 10-15 minute installation process, which includes establishing an e-mail address and password, customers will enjoy Internet access on a virtual constant or immediate basis.
“They will be off and running as long as they can get a radio signal,” said Cyr.
The service is also very secure. The Clearwire system allows only registered users, the wireless modem is available only to Clearwire subscribers, it has a two-layer access system and uses only FCC-licensed frequencies that are not available to the general public.
“It’s like having property with no zoning regulations,” said Cyr of regular Internet access. “It can be used for anything. We have the right to control who is in the spectrum. It’s very secure. In fact, military technicians built this system for security.”
With a limited number of antennas, Clearwire is only available right now inside the I-295 loop. Cyr says the coverage area will expand over time and as the number of subscribers dictates.