this post was submitted on 19 Apr 2025
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There are many community networks out there, but they require more dedication and funding than simply paying an ISP, for a worse service. It's a hard sell to the average doomscroller.
The EFF scaled down their efforts for OpenWireless.org after it became obvious that they'd have to support hundreds of different hardware models, and ultimately abandoned the project.
A couple decades ago, Fon tried to build a mixed community-commercial network with their own standardized hardware, but even the commercial incentive was not enough to keep it afloat in the long run. Some of the hardware got repurposed for community projects, but most of the best placed hotspots ended up in the trash, replaced by municipal and ISP networks.
In many places, fiber is a no-go. Like, in my city there was a large move to get fiber to most houses over a decade ago, but after the first deployment of a handful of ISPs, the city stopped giving permits for additional deployments: lease from one of the existing ISPs, or you're SOL.