ROCHESTER – MichTel Communications LLC and DTE Energy are in the final stages of negotiations that should clear the way for the Wireless Oakland project to move forward.

Oakland County Deputy Executive and CIO Phil Bertolini delivered that message to a session of the Michigan Technology Leaders conference held in Rochester May 18.

?The negotiations were very intricate,? he said. ?But now we are ready to launch the project and we are very excited about that.?

Bertolini also said that he expects to finalize the Wireless Oakland plans for the entire county in 60 days and believes the county should have free, wireless Internet access by the end of 2007.

Wireless Oakland is a project calling for a sophisticated wireless network allowing free access to basic Internet services for consumers in Oakland County. Wireless Oakland will offer free Internet access up to 128K.

?That may not sound like much, but it is four times faster than dial-up,? Bertolini said.

A pilot demonstration of the technology took place during the Arts, Beats & Eats festival that was held over the Labor Day Weekend last year when wireless Internet connectivity was available within a square mile radius in downtown Pontiac.

Last November, Bertolini announced that MichTel would be the private sector partner in the Wireless Oakland Project.

Oakland County Executive L. Brooks Patterson has been promoting Wireless Oakland as a means to prepare Oakland County and its workforce for the jobs and technology of tomorrow. Equally, if not more, important, it will enhance Oakland County’s ability to attract and retain high-tech and nanotechnology corporations. When fully implemented, Patterson believes the project will have far-reaching effects for the county including improvements in its schools, jobs base, business environment, tourism, and global communications capabilities.

Bertolini maintains that Wireless Oakland is a critical project for the county. He said that 1.5 million people need Internet access in Oakland County every day.

?But most of them only have dial-up connections. And some of the phone lines in the county are so old that people can?t even get dial-up. On top of that, our population is projected to grow by 200,000 by 2020.?

Bertolini said that the next step in the Wireless Oakland project would be the selection of non-profit agencies that the county would work with to provide free laptops to low-income and senior citizen residents of the county. That part of the program also involves free computer training.

?And we will offer the people who get the free laptops a discount on their next PC if they complete the ongoing training that is offer,? he said.

Oakland County is not along in its quest to deliver free Internet access to its citizens. Washtenaw County officials are putting together a similar program.

County officials say the Wireless Washtenaw project continues to gain momentum as more and more local units of government sign the Master Participation Agreement (MPA). The MPA allows communities to commit to providing assets that will facilitate the build-out of the countywide wireless network.

The agreement has been approved by the cities of Ann Arbor, Saline and Ypsilanti, as well as the Townships of Ann Arbor, Bridgewater, Dexter, Freedom, Lyndon, Manchester, Scio, Superior and York. In return for providing those assets, citizens of these communities will receive a free level of service which is currently being negotiated by leaders of the Wireless Washtenaw Steering Committee and county officials.

?A wireless network puts our community in a position not only to compete in the global

market, but it will also offer new and exciting services to our residents that previously

had been unobtainable and/or unaffordable?, said William McFarlane, Superior Township

supervisor. ?Our community will gladly assist in this innovative effort which will reduce

the costs and improve the reliability of mobile computing, while supporting further

economic development within the area. The component of free service for our residents

is another reason to support this initiative.?

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