-----Original Message----- From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] Behalf Of Lee Barken
Source: http://wifinetnews.com/archives/003349.html Cometa Networks Closes Its Doors Tomorrow According to several sources, Cometa Networks will cease operations on Wednesday: Wi-Fi Networking News was able to confirm through multiple independent and reliable sources that Cometa Networks will be shutting its doors as early as tomorrow. An anonymous email this morning triggered our queries; it seemed dubious. However, we were able to confirm the news independently. It.s also noted in a posting on the obscene but generally accurate F.dcompany. Messages left earlier today with the firm.s outside PR company and with Cometa.s VP of marketing were not returned by noon. Cometa Networks was funded by Intel Capital, the company.s investment arm, and two venture capital firms. AT&T and IBM committed resources to the project as well. From the start, Cometa was treated as dubious by many established players in the industry due to their frequent claims that they would install 20,000 locations with Wi-Fi service within two years of their Dec. 2002 launch. Their model was to resell these locations to cell operators and other partners of that scale, as well as to aggregators like iPass. After more than a year of operation, Cometa had a handful of partners and about 250 locations, including 150 trial service hotspots set up with McDonald.s in the New York tri-state area and Seattle and most of the rest across many kinds of venues in their Seattle test market. But McDonald.s chose Wayport to install Wi-Fi in its over 12,000 domestic U.S. stores and franchisees. This decision quickly caused Toshiba, another McDonald.s trial partner, to close its hotspot operation and work to transfer locations to Cometa. Cometa was able to announce that Barnes & Noble had chosen Cometa to build and resell access to its over 550 U.S. bookstores, which seemed like a big step in Cometa re-establishing itself as a growing operator with locations that were worth reselling and aggregating. Cometa put a brave face on its future in an interview with Wi-Fi Networking News on April 21, 2004. The company.s CEO and a vice president painted a picture of a more conservative growth pattern that reflected more of the pattern followed by FatPort and Surf and Sip, smaller but steadily growing hotspot operators that emphasized partnerships, reselling, and cash-flow positive short-term goals. Unfortunately, for reasons that are murky at the moment, the company will be no longer be operating as of tomorrow. We expect more details to be available in reports later today. Posted by Glenn Fleishman at May 18, 2004 12:18 PM | TrackBack
