Wifly或Wiflop:Qware是否能為全球最大的都市無線網路創造出一個有效可行的商業模式? / Taipei City has made a bold step as a first mover in the increasingly popular municipal wireless movement. Currently Taipei’s WiFly service holds the distinction of operating the largest Wi-Fi network in the world. But there are issues that go beyond the accolades Taipei has received in the press. A municipal wireless network is a complex system that involves more than simply setting up a large number of outdoor wireless antennas. While most city leaders around the world cite social improvement as goals for setting up the networks, the reality if that these networks are large scale business ventures. In most large scale projects, private companies are funding municipal networks. Taipei’s network is no exception. The WiFly network must be also able to support the services that will allow the private company Qware to create a workable business model in order to recoup the high setup costs it spent. Looking into Taipei’s experience with WiFly is important because it is currently the only network of its kind and there is a massive amount of money that other cities around the world are investing in their own municipal networks without any evidence that they work. Unfortunately the value of WiFly is mostly as a lesson to other cities considering such a municipal wireless project. The actual subscriber numbers for WiFly are far below initial projects. Qware faces a daunting task of creating a workable business model with WiFly. The difficulties lie in a chicken and egg type scenario in which the Wi-Fi infrastructure does not support the wireless services that citizens would pay for and the lack of a sufficient wireless infrastructure, including location based services, does not allow smaller companies to invest in the development of wireless services. Making the situation even more difficult for Qware is the fact that the wireless industry is evolving so quickly with new standards like Mobile WiMAX that better support outdoor mobile use and the probable convergence of cellular and IP based broadband. By the time the wireless service industry evolves, WiFly’s Wi-Fi infrastructure may be obsolete.