[MLB-WIRELESS] Commercial use of MW network

[Dan Flett]

What I'm getting at is that "we" (the hobbyist users/creators of the
network) possibly stand to gain as much if not more than "they"
(potential commercial users) do from us.  Mutual exploitation is to
everyone's gain.  A company-operated node would be well-resourced and
reliable.  And because they're on "our" network we would make it clear
to them that just as they use our nodes, we can use theirs.  As far as I
can tell, there are no rules governing who can, can't or
can-with-conditions access the Melbourne Wireless network.  The only
considerations as to access are technical Quality-of-Service issues.  I
would suggest that any company that wished to use the network would be
asked to adhere to the principles of free access.  If they don't, we can
always block them.  There are already commercial users of the 2.4Ghz
band, and many private commercial 802.11b networks across town.  How is
it different if two disparate parts of such a private commercial network
are connected via VPN across our network?

The reason we keep getting knocked back for access to prime locations
for our nodes is because the companies who own the sites can't see
what's in it for them.  If we formally open the MW network to them we're
far more likely to be able to get nodes up at those great sites.

As for wether the MW network is reliable enough for business use -
consider that at the moment many companies with remote offices use
dial-up to connect to the main office.  If the wireless link fails, they
can always go back to dial-up and be no worse off than they were
originally.  The MW network offers a way to get network access to sites
where it may be impractical to get a phone line installed - temporary
sites for instance.

Ultimately, the more nodes on the network, the more reliable (via
redundancy) it is.  And with more working, routing nodes the easier it
is for new nodes to connect.  Then we will have a real city-wide
network.

Dan

> -----Original Message-----
> From: owner-melbwireless at wireless.org.au [mailto:owner-
> melbwireless at wireless.org.au] On Behalf Of Ryan Abbenhuys
> Sent: Wednesday, 3 March 2004 22:43
> To: Dan Flett
> Cc: melbwireless at wireless.org.au
> Subject: Re: [MLB-WIRELESS] Commercial use of MW network
> 
> it's an iffy area, it depends what the company is doing with it and
what
> sort of traffic and whether any money is exchanging hands as to
whether
> it's
> legal by ACA regulations.
> 
> without proper legal advice we would be best to steer clear of
anything
> like.
> 
> As I mentioned, personally, I'd be very pissed off if I discovered a
> company
> was using any part of the network I was helping run and would make
this
> VERY
> clear to them. :-\
> 
> In my opinion a company should morally and ethically NOT use a
community
> network to save themselves money.  I don't know any non-profit
community
> group that would allow a company to use their resources in order to
save
> themselves money.
> 
> The committee and members will need to discuss this position to decide
> where
> we stand with regards to non-individuals or community/non-profit
groups
> using the network and actual companies
> 
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "Dan Flett" <conhoolio at hotmail.com>
> To: "'Ryan Abbenhuys'" <sneeze at alphalink.com.au>
> Cc: "'Melbourne Wireless'" <melbwireless at wireless.org.au>
> Sent: Wednesday, March 03, 2004 10:38 PM
> Subject: RE: [MLB-WIRELESS] Commercial use of MW network
> 
> 
> > At this point, what's stopping a company from using the MW network?
Are
> > there any laws or government regulations that prohibit a company
from,
> > say, putting a VPN across our network to link it's main office to a
> > temporary site office?
> >
> > Dan
> >
> > > -----Original Message-----
> > > From: Ryan Abbenhuys [mailto:sneeze at alphalink.com.au]
> > > Sent: Wednesday, 3 March 2004 22:24
> > > To: Dan Flett
> > > Cc: melbwireless at wireless.org.au
> > > Subject: Re: [MLB-WIRELESS] Commercial use of MW network
> > >
> > > No, for legal and licensing reasons.
> > >
> > > On a personal level I wouldn't want any company using part of the
> > network
> > > for commercial reasons that I helped setup or maintain
> > >
> > > ----- Original Message -----
> > > From: "Dan Flett" <conhoolio at hotmail.com>
> > > To: "Melbourne Wireless" <melbwireless at wireless.org.au>
> > > Sent: Wednesday, March 03, 2004 10:21 PM
> > > Subject: [MLB-WIRELESS] Commercial use of MW network
> >
> 
> 
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