Google Blankets Mountain View in Free Wi Fi

Only Google draws consumers in for free but still manages to profit significantly.

Google has opened a wireless Internet umbrella over its hometown in northern California’s high-tech Silicon Valley, enabling anyone in the city to connect online for free.

“It worked smashingly,” Chris Sacca, Google head of special initiatives, said on Wednesday. “We have really been looking forward to this day. The citizens have embraced it as their network.”

Google spent one million dollars creating a network that lets people with wireless-enabled computers, telephones or other devices to link to the Internet nearly anywhere in the city of Mountain View, which covers almost 31 sqkm.