Wireless community networks (WCNs) or wireless community projects or simply community networks, are non-centralized, self-managed and collaborative networks organized in a grassroots fashion by communities, NGO's and cooperatives in order to provide a viable alternative to municipal wireless networks for consumers.
Wi-Fi is a family of wireless network protocols based on the IEEE 802.11 family of standards, which are commonly used for local area networking of devices and Internet access, allowing nearby digital devices to exchange data by radio waves. These are the most widely used computer networks in the world, used globally in home and small office networks to link desktop and laptop computers, tablet computers, smartphones, smart TVs, printers, and smart speakers together and to a wireless router to connect them to the Internet, and in wireless access points in public places like coffee shops, hotels, libraries, and airports to provide visitors with Internet connectivity for their mobile devices.
A hotspot is a physical location where people can obtain Internet access, typically using Wi-Fi technology, via a wireless local-area network (WLAN) using a router connected to an Internet service provider.
Fon Wireless Ltd. is a for-profit company incorporated and registered in the United Kingdom that provides wireless services. Fon was founded in Madrid, Spain, in 2006, by Martín Varsavsky where it headquarters most of its operations.
Boingo Wireless is an American company that designs, builds and manages wireless networks. Its public and private networks include distributed antenna systems (DAS), small cells, macro towers and more than one million Wi-Fi hotspots around the world. The company operates networks for airports, transit stations, stadiums, military bases, hospitals and commercial properties. The company is headquartered in Los Angeles, California, with additional offices in London, New York City, and Oak Brook, Illinois. The company was listed on the Nasdaq until it was acquired by investment firm Digital Colony Management LLC in 2021.
WiTricity Corporation is an American wireless charging technology company based in Watertown, Massachusetts. The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) spin-off was founded by professor Marin Soljačić in 2007. WiTricity technology allows wireless power transfer over distance via magnetic resonance and the company licenses technology and reference designs for wireless electrical vehicle (EV) charging as well as consumer products such as laptops, mobile phones and televisions.
Radwin is a wireless broadband hardware manufacturing company that develops and creates wireless point-to-point, wireless point-to-multipoint and wireless mobility systems. Its products are used by telecoms carriers, city and town councils, remote communities, ISPs, WISPs, and private networks. Radwin also provides hardware for moving applications such as metro systems, bus networks, ferries and airports, as well as vehicles such as patrol vehicles, manned and unmanned heavy machinery in mines and ports. The hardware is used for applications including mobile and IP backhaul, home and enterprise wireless broadband access, private network connectivity and video surveillance transmission.
MiFi is a brand name to describe a wireless router that acts as a mobile Wi-Fi hotspot. In many countries, including The United States, Canada, and Mexico, Inseego Corp owns a registered trademark on the "MiFi" brand name; in the United Kingdom, mobile operator Hutchison 3G owns the "MiFi" trademark. Novatel Wireless has never offered an official explanation for the origin of the name "MiFi"; it has been suggested that it is short for "My Wi-Fi".
Towerstream Corporation is a Fixed Wireless Fiber Alternative company delivering high-speed Internet access to businesses. The company offers broadband services in 12 urban markets including New York City, Boston, Los Angeles, Chicago, Philadelphia, the San Francisco Bay area, Miami, Seattle, Dallas-Fort Worth, Houston, Las Vegas-Reno, and the greater Providence area, where the company is headquartered. In 2014, Towerstream launched its On-Net fixed-wireless service offering On-Net building tenants access to dedicated, symmetrical high-speed Internet connectivity, with a premier SLA, at market-setting prices. Founded in 1999 by Philip Urso and Jeffrey Thompson (eFortress), Towerstream held its first public offering in January 2007 and traded on the NASDAQ Capital Markets under symbol TWER. In November 2016 the stock had declined in price, was delisted from NASDAQ, and moved to the over-the-counter market.
Ruckus Networks is a brand of wired and wireless networking equipment and software owned by CommScope. Ruckus offers Switches, Wi-Fi access points, CBRS access points, Controllers, Management systems, Cloud management, AAA/BYOD software, AI and ML analytics software, location software and IoT controller software products to mobile carriers, broadband service providers, and corporate enterprises. As a company, Ruckus invented and has patented wireless voice, video, and data technology, such as adaptive antenna arrays that extend signal range, increase data rates, and avoid interference, providing distribution of delay-sensitive content over standard 802.11 Wi-Fi.
Republic Wireless is an American mobile virtual network operator (MVNO). It is a subsidiary of Dish Wireless. Republic sells low cost mobile phone service on its partner AT&T's network. Republic started as a unique company that provided customers with VOIP numbers which relied on WiFi first with cell as a backup. After being acquired by Dish Wireless, Republic converted to providing conventional cellular service. Their service is now promoted as being available to Dish Network customers only. Switched from T-Mobile network to AT&T network when purchased by Dish around July 2022.
Aptilo Networks is a company headquartered in Stockholm Sweden, which produces and markets software systems to manage mobile data and Wi-Fi services for 3G, LTE, WiMAX, Wi-Fi and fixed broadband networks, including solutions for mobile data offloading using Wi-Fi. Aptilo's service management platform controls billing, user services and access within the network. The company offers service management and policy control solutions for both telephony network operators and Internet service providers.
Hélder Fragueiro Antunes is a Portuguese-American executive, computer scientist, and former racecar driver. A Cisco Systems executive for over twenty years, as well as founder and first Chairman of the OpenFog Consortium, Antunes currently serves as Chief Executive Officer of Crowdkeep. His car racing career in the 1980s and '90s made him one of the most preeminent open road racers at the time.
ecobee is a Canadian home automation company that makes smart thermostats, temperature and occupancy sensors, smart light switches, smart cameras, and contact sensors.
Founded in 2003, the Wireless Broadband Alliance (WBA) undertakes programs and activities to address business and technical issues, as well as opportunities, for member companies. WBA work areas include standards development, industry guidelines, trials, certification and advocacy. Its key programs include Next Gen Wi-Fi, OpenRoaming, 5G, IoT, Testing & Interoperability, and Policy & Regulatory Affairs, with member-led Work Groups dedicated to resolving standards and technical issues.
Cisco Jasper is a subsidiary of Cisco Systems that provides a cloud-based software platform for the Internet of Things (IoT). The company was founded as Jasper Wireless, Inc., later known as Jasper Technologies, Inc., headquartered in Santa Clara, California. Cisco Jasper's platform is designed to help organizations launch, manage, and monetize the deployment of the Internet of Things worldwide. Founded in 2004, Jasper partners with over 120 mobile operator networks to serve IoT and machine-to-machine (M2M) companies different industries including: automotive, home security and automation, agriculture, food and beverage, wearable technology, healthcare, advertising and industrial equipment.
Nomad Digital is an Internet Protocol (IP) Connectivity provider to the transport sector. It deploys wireless broadband connections for trains, metros, trams and buses, including passenger Wi-Fi services and remote condition monitoring for on-board rail components. Headquartered in Newcastle upon Tyne in England, it operates globally.
MagnaCom is a technology IP license provider based in Israel and Orange County, California. The company is focused on reducing the bandwidth needed in wired and wireless communications, via the WAM technology, an alternative to Quadrature amplitude modulation The business provides technology to carriers, handset providers, wired and wireless companies, and is embedded in semiconductor chips.
Purple is a UK-based technology firm that specializes in intelligent spaces. The company offers a three core products guest WiFi, business analytics and digital wayfinding.
