In the Friday announcement, MobilePro noted that it had been declared the winner of an RFP for the project. The firm complained that after it went through a lengthy permitting process, the city made a "counter proposal requiring that the company establish a free high-speed wireless network supported almost exclusively by advertising revenue without the benefit of the city serving as an anchor tenant."

They also said they do not believe that an advertising-supported business is possible in a the broadband world, and they could be right. We've seen what happens to "free" ISPs in the past. Moreover, it's still a blow to the city and to global WiFi as a whole, because likely it puts the project back a few years at the least.

Source: Tech Spot