Canberra is set to host Australia’s largest free outdoor wireless internet network for public use.
ACT Chief Minister Katy Gallagher used her annual State of the Territory address on Thursday to launch a $4.4 million digital action plan for Canberra, including roll out of the wi-fi network in the CBD from the second half of 2014.
It comes as the ACT government seeks to “transition Canberra to a modern digital city”.
Ms Gallagher told a business lunch at the National Gallery of Australia that free wi-fi networks would also be rolled out in other town centres and commercial precincts in the ACT.
“Once complete, the territory’s network will be the largest free outdoor public network in Australia,” she said.
“While not a service for business directly, it will create yet another incentive to be active online and engage with fast-growing digital media channels.
Under the plan, Civic’s Garema Place will be developed as a centre of digital innovation with a new dedicated digital space and digital screen.
A new digital and innovation service centre will also be developed to provide “incubation” for digital ideas.
“[Garema Place] will create a new forum for the meeting of creative minds and creative digital ideas in the city,” Ms Gallagher said.
Free internet (courtesy of the taxpayer)
Free internet (courtesy of the taxpayer)
“If you trust in yourself, and believe in your dreams, and follow your star. . . you'll still get beaten by people who spent their time working hard and learning things and weren't so lazy.”
Re: Free internet (courtesy of the taxpayer)
I believe they implemented the same thing in San Francisco...or tried to. Am I right?
To quote P. J. O'Rourke, "If you think healthcare is expensive now, wait until it is 'free.'"
To quote P. J. O'Rourke, "If you think healthcare is expensive now, wait until it is 'free.'"
Re: Free internet (courtesy of the taxpayer)
A useful experiment.
Many functions are only provided, or by far are best provided, by government like regulating drug effectiveness and safety, water quality, roads, and so on. We are still in the early days of the computer revolution and it will be useful to know if providing free public WiFi should be a function of government or not. So the best way to find out is to do the experiment and see what the results are.
yrs,
rubato
(a slam dunk for the experimental model!)
Many functions are only provided, or by far are best provided, by government like regulating drug effectiveness and safety, water quality, roads, and so on. We are still in the early days of the computer revolution and it will be useful to know if providing free public WiFi should be a function of government or not. So the best way to find out is to do the experiment and see what the results are.
yrs,
rubato
(a slam dunk for the experimental model!)
Re: Free internet (courtesy of the taxpayer)
I think it's only like that in downtown SF. But I've gotten free WiFi in many cities on the SF peninsula. It may not be the government that implemented it but there are so many businesses that offer free WiFi that there is always something available in the downtown areas of many cities.dgs49 wrote:I believe they implemented the same thing in San Francisco...or tried to. Am I right?