Re-printed from The Olympian – Business Briefs- Tuesday May 31, 2005
The Olympian: Private sector offers unique challenges (PDF)
Olympia, Seattle ranked tops for Net customers
Popular Science magazine ranked Seattle and Olympia as number one and two respectively for having the highest national percentage of Internet customers.
The magazine credited the cities’ relatively high number of free wireless access points as a major reason for the high rankings. It also credited the two cities for bucking a national trend for wireless hotspots to charge users a fee for the service.
Olympia-based Zhonka Broadband maintains several free wireless spots in the South Sound region. Company spokesman Dave Olson said it allows the company to showcase its high-speed DSL technology while businesses with the hotspots find that they help to attract customers.