The news that as of June Camden offers free wi-fi to people in the borough was accompanied with the deflating fact that it's only free for half-an-hour and in a limited number of places. The promise of the scheme's extension and 17 more boroughs (ie not all 33 of them) to come and hardly gets our fingers tapping with excitement.
Smart London?
The Mayor of London's aim is to make London the best big city in the world. To achieve that the city clearly needs support for digital innovation to drive business growth. Earlier this year the Mayor assembled a 'Smart London' digital board to advise on using technology and data to make the capital a better place to live, work and invest. Surely they would not advise partial roll-out and the award of 10 year contracts for the infrastructure supplier?
New York City's digital roadmap
New York is no doubt quaking in its boots as London puts together fragmented digital support services to people and businesses. New York has a city-wide digital roadmap, a comprehensive strategy that London is crying out for if it is to remain competitive and attractive.
We think investment in city-wide infrastructure is needed now or big cities like New York, Delhi, Rio de Janeiro, or smaller ones closer to home like Birmingham, will leave London behind.
Come on Boris get on your bike or we'll miss the boat.