Comments on: Skyhook’s MyLoki Bypasses GPS, Makes Location Part of Your Online Persona

By: Viral Video News » Big Tech Day for the Boston Area

Viral Video News » Big Tech Day for the Boston Area — Fri, 21 Mar 2008 14:40:57 +0000

[...] reported on Xconomy and now on Techcrunch, Loki / Skyhook Wireless launched a new location service that will tell [...]

By: Zach

Zach — Thu, 13 Mar 2008 14:47:04 +0000

Sorry Duke, I have to go against you as well.

Wifi is still very much on its way up, regardless of how long it has been around. More and more cities are planning region wide wifi- and Wade is absolutely correct in that 3G is still (somehow) a distant dream. But I’d like to argue that Sprint is tanking, not because they had the audacity to back WiMax, but because they’ve been completely incapable of delivering it to the market.

WiMax has been continually promised for “Late Next Year”, while at the same time Wifi hotspots are jumping up all over the city. Plus, 3G networks are relatively weak compared to the data transfer possible with Wifi. And considering how few places in the US have full 3G networks… it will be ages before there is a suitable alternative to Wifi (which I argue won’t be Wimax anyway… 700mhz roll-out?)

And not that I agree with this argument, but remember: isn’t this is why the iPhone has wifi but no 3G?

By: Wade Roush

Wade Roush — Wed, 12 Mar 2008 15:42:14 +0000

Personally, I have to agree with Jim on this one. Duke, it would be nice if WiMax and other forms of wireless broadband were being rolled out in the U.S. as quickly as this seems to be happening in Europe (cf. the Network World article you link to). But if anything is clear from watching the U.S. wireless industry, it’s that NOTHING happens quickly. 3G remains a sadly distant dream. Look how Sprint’s stockholders punished the company for having the audacity to get out in front on WiMax. In most places, WiFi is going to be the only wireless broadband game in town for the next few years, which is the critical period for adoption of location based services.

By: Duke

Duke — Wed, 12 Mar 2008 15:23:56 +0000

Jim, I think that your post proves my previous point. WiFi is the technology of the past. It will still be around as you noted (like CD and VHS), but is not something companies should bet their future on (who is betting on VHS or dial-up today?). We live in internet time, so it may not take 10 years for shift from WiFi to be made, nevertheless it is inevitable. I think that Skyhook move is pretty much under the gun and they have to use the momentum they got with Apple. Otherwise VHS like future is possible, but is not fun, right?

http://www.networkworld.com/news/2008/031008-ericsson-predicts-demise-for.html

By: » Big Tech Day for the Boston Area :: 93South - Thoughts on New England Web 2.0

Wed, 12 Mar 2008 12:50:25 +0000

[...] reported on Xconomy and now on Techcrunch, Loki / Skyhook Wireless launched a new location service that will tell [...]

By: Jim

Jim — Wed, 12 Mar 2008 12:38:12 +0000

Duke, the long-held promise of WiMax and other mobile wireless doesn’t mean WiFi is going away. With 10′s of millions of access points and dropping costs of broadband, it’s unlikely to disappear in the next 10 years. MP3s have been available for more than a decade; anyone still have a CD player? DVDs are also more than 10 years old, anyone got VHS? A 1/3 of Massachusetts still lacks broadband; we’re just at the beginning of services like these.

By: duke

duke — Wed, 12 Mar 2008 07:35:33 +0000

Interesting… With mobile broadband coming to age and technologies like WiMax soon to be available, it is not difficult to predict that the future doesn’t look promissing for wi-fi. It is peaking now but in a few years it’ll likely become the thing of the past. It is understandable that Skyhook has to quickly use the momentum and try to become consumer oriented web20 company while there is still time. Not an easy shift in a crowded consumer space…