ART MATRIX - LIGHTLINK
PO 880 Ithaca, NY 14851-0880
(607) 277-0959 Voice
(607) 277-8913 Fax
(607) 277-5026 Modems
homer@lightlink.com E-mail
jes@lightlink.com E-mail
11/25/05 Friday 7:51pm EST
07/23/06 Sunday 2:40pm EST
01/27/08 Sunday 7:40pm EST
02/10/09 Tuesday 5:35pm EST
FOR BROAD PUBLIC ISSUE
LIGHTLINK HOT SPOTS http://www.lightlink.com/hotspots
Lightlink is offering free hotspots to restaurants, coffee shops,
and laundromats around Ithaca, Trumansburg and Watkins Glen.
This means that the hosting enterprise does not pay for the
existence of the hotspot on their premise. The hotspots are paid for
by the customers that use them.
If you are a public eating place where people can sit at tables,
or a laundromat, you may apply for a free Lightlink hotspot to be
installed at your establishment.
If we can reach you from our existing radio network, the hotspot
is free. If we need to install a DSL line to bring the service to
you, there may be charges of $63/month depending on your situation.
The charge may also be waived if we can get more than one hotspot on
per DSL line.
Lightlink hotspots are installed without a contract period,
either party may withdraw from this agreement at any time for any
reason, with 90 days written notice.
WHAT YOUR CUSTOMERS GET
The Lightlink hotspot will provide internet access to all users,
some limitations may apply, for example on music and video downloading and
uploading.
Our monitoring software keeps careful track of people's usage and
quarantines those that are abusing the system.
Web browsing will first present the new user with an opening
screen where they can either signon as guest to use what free access
is provided at the time, or create a paid username for themselves to
give them paid service.
The opening screen will also offer advertisements for all hotspot
owners (free to owner) and for anyone else that wishes to be
advertised for a fee (as yet undetermined).
Paid accounts will start low in price and climb over time to
market supportable levels.
Pricing as of 02/10/90 is presently:
E-mail service is free 24x7 without limitation or signon.
Web service is free for 15 minutes every 45 minutes with guest
signon.
Pricing for uninterrupted service is $1/day, $8/month or $80/year
with username and password signon.
It is our intent to maximize the long term survivability of the
hotspot system and lightlink in general. It is not our intent to
provide a 'freenet' to the general public.
The purpose of the free access is to allow new users to try the
system and see if they like it. It is not intended for any user to
continue to use the free access as their main mode of access, day
after day.
Thus availability and nature of free access may change over time
as the business model perfects itself.
The presently existing free access and costs are described on the
opening pages of the portal when they first sign on.
WHAT YOU GET AS THE STORE OWNER
Lightlink will provide to the owners of the establishment free of
charge:
1) Back office connectivity to our broadband backbone via radio
or DSL if necessary, in the same locatiion as the hotspot on the same
backbone as the hotspot. If the owner of the hotspot does not have an
office in the hotspot establishment, this does not apply. The owner
does not have to use lightlink for their own internal internet and
point of sale connections, but may.
2) As many radio access points (APs) as necessary to cover the
establishment for store customers with full support and replacement
should they go down. We will also install one wireless router
for the back office management with encrypted for the sole use of
store management computers and laptops.
3.) The store will be granted free of charge one small business
broadband internet account, including dialup, one domain, e-mails as
needed, and VPN encryption for their backbone connection if necessary.
The account does not include any heavy or continuous use of
bandwidth such as used by radio internet, music or video up or
downloading, web cams or other similar remote video security devices.
Specifically forbidden are local video surveillance systems that
run on wireless. as these will destroy the hotspot system in the
store and in surrounding stores.
Nor does it include installing or maintaining private VPN's to
the stores private networks. These will work however, as will Point
of Sale devices. It also includes Voice over IP phones. VOIP is not
guaranteed to work well and is not recommended at this time.
Initial setup is free and Lightlink will be happy to maintain
your internal network at going rates.
Employees of the store may of course use the office connection
with permission of the owner, but will not be granted free hotspot
accounts to use either at the store or at other hotspots.
4.) Bandwidth charges will not be accrued but monitored. Abusers
and infected users will be locked out or redirected to a screen
detailing their infection and directions for getting disinfected
before being allowed to continue.
5.) The store's name will be advertised as a Lightlink Hotspot in
various ads if and when placed by Lightlink. The store will also be
advertised in banner ads on the hotspot sign-on splash screens.
WHAT WE NEED IN RETURN
The establishment must not install a competing hotspot from a
competing ISP as long as the Lightlink hotspot is active in their
establishment. Exceptions may be allowed on a case by case basis.
Where feasible and desirable Lightlink must be granted roof
access to place receiver/repeater antennas, and/or whatever other
radio equipment is deemed desirable to both receive and resend the
internet signal to other customers.
Roof rights include enclosed space to store the radios and power
to run them inside the establishment where they will be safe. Power
requirements will be minimal.
Roof space must be not be provided to any competing ISP offering
wireless interent access from that roof while the hotspot is in place,
but exceptions may be made on a case by case basis.
Access to the premise and roof for repairs must be granted 24x7.
If this is a problem, exceptions can be made depending on your
situation.
If the owner of the establishment is not the landlord of the
building, we will be happy to negotiate directly with the landlord for
roof rights if we desire or need them.
Other Lightlink hotspots and paid residential and commercial
accounts may be sold to others in the same building or other buildings
in radio range, fed from the same backbone used to provide the
hotspot, or from the repeater located on the roof or from any DSL
pairs feeding the hotspot.
It is also assumed that if two or more establishments in the same
building wish to have a Lightlink hotspot or a commercial paid
account, they may need to cooperate with each other to help us provide
the wiring and conduit to reach the source that will feed them both.
The hotspot must never be turned off including during vacation
times, and customers must never be penalized for using it at your
tables, except during heavy times if table hogging becomes a problem,
which must be clearly stated and negotiated with Lightlink before
installation. Generally hotspots attract customers during empty times
so problems rarely arise.
A postcard sized logo proclaiming your establishment as a
Lightlink hotspot must be posted on every door window leading to the
establishment, in clear sight of anyone coming into and going out of
the establishment, and a small 8x11 poster with instructions must be
posted in the establishment for users to consult.
The store must also prominently display a small CDROM sized
box, containing free CD-ROM's offering Lightlink's various services,
which we will maintain.
Homer