Rose Cantine

Here’s a photo I took at 6:00 pm in front of the Apple store in downtown San Francisco. The crowd in front of the store cheered as the first customer came out with an iPhone. The queue extended around the corner. I want an iPhone - eventually - but this version does not have 3G and comes locked (even though the carrier, AT&T, is not subsidizing it). With devices such as the iPhone that make web browsing a delight, people will demand Internet everywhere and ubiquitous broadband service, preferably via Wi-Fi which is cheap to roll out and already available on laptops, phones and tablets. The idea I had in 2003 - that cities would become carriers of telecommunications - has become a reality with more cities and regions setting up ubiquitous Wi-Fi networks.