The FON Labs just released a very beta download that turns your Intel based Mac or your Linux based computer (Ubuntu for example) into a FONspot.

I have been testing this download and it is really fun to use. For example at Kinnernet, I made a lot of friends when their WiFi went down and the only available WiFi was the one coming out of my Mac that was receiving internet signal with a 3G card. So next time there’s rip off WiFi somewhere, or no WiFi, you can take out your laptop with your flat data plan and be nice (a Linus Fonero) or entrepreneurial (a Bill Fonero) and help others connect.

Om Malik covers the news here.

The reason we don´t have it for Windows or Vista is that Microsoft handles WiFi in a way that makes it hard for a laptop to shift from being a receiver of WiFi signal to being an emitter of WiFi signal. But if anyone knows how to do this for Windows pls contact me at martin@fon.es.

I live in Madrid, but I have a home in Manhattan where I am a Time Warner Cable customer. At the time I chose Time Warner Cable for my internet service (I have Cable TV as well, but rarely watch TV) because of its speed, which is so much better than its DSL competitor. But now I have another reason to be their customer. FON just announced a partnership with Time Warner Cable.

Needless to say, I am so happy that FON, which is mostly an American funded company (US partners include Google, eBay and Sequoia), teamed up with a major US ISP partner. Outside of USA these partnerships had been easier to accomplish, but somehow in the States there was the misperception that FON was bad for broadband providers. It took us a while to explain that this was not the case. Fortunately, the folks at Time Warner Cable had the vision to see what many ISPs in Asia and Europe had already seen. Their view, and now Time Warner’s, is that by teaming up with FON they will sell more broadband at no additional cost to them. The key here is that with FON you can securely share some bandwidth and roam the world for free but only if you are first a broadband customer. FON is free sharing among those who have already paid for their broadband. If you are not a broadband customer, FON is the most affordable WiFi in the States at $3 per first day and $2 for any additional days. But it’s not free.

ISPs like FON because it makes their bandwidth proposition more appetizing since clients pay at home and get to roam for free. They also like FON because it reduces churn (main reason for churn is travel but if clients disconnect from home they don’t roam the world for free anymore). In other words, FON invented the “I am rarely at home still I pay for broadband cause I use it for free when I travel”. Furthermore, ISPs like what FON represents to they customers: “community” as many ISPs appear as cold, non-community oriented. Finally, FON share revenues with partner ISPs whenever non-Foneros connect to one of the parnter ISP customer’s FONspots. Thus, the ISPs also make additional revenue of their cable ends.

FON had already teamed up with other cable companies, for example, CNS — the largest cable operator in Taiwan. But launching big time in the States with Time Warner Cable is a dream come true for FON.

I would like to thank Andrew Rasiej and Ejovi Nuwere for coming to the first meeting with Time Warner Cable with me; Joanna Rees, CEO of FON USA, for closing this partnership; and a special thanks to Carl Rosetti and the rest of the Time Warner Cable team for having the vision to join FON.
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