I think it´s funny that this web site says that the walking hotspot is a patent pending solution. At Fon we have been writing about this for two years. One of our ideas was to give foneras connected to 3G to homeless people so instead of begging they would offer WiFi. In any case JoikuSpot is my favorite so far. To me all these solutions only prove once more that if given a choice people prefer WiFi over 3G. And my general view on patents btw is that they should only be allowed in fields in which clear proof can be given that without patents there would not be investments, like medicine. I think patents in software and electronics just don´t make sense. The few times I have done something with patents was as a defensive move. I had a bad experience after inventing CallBack and allowing anyone to copy us and then somebody patented and said that we had to pay him to do call back. We then proved prior art and won.

Follow Martin Varsavsky on Twitter: twitter.com/martinvars

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Paul RODTS on March 30, 2008  · 

Martin, you are absolutly right…There are sharks out there that try to take adventage of normal ideas…They are not only patenting normal things in computer applications or simple crossover solutions between database software and telecom….But also normal agricultural knowlegde,…even centuries old agriculture plants are patented…..The result being that farmers in for example India, must suddenly pay money, if they still want to use the seeds present in their region during many generations…Those patent takers and their lawyers are just vultures…

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wolfgang on March 30, 2008  · 

seems that http://wwwfon.com cannot be reached in germany ???

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Paul RODTS on April 23, 2008  · 

I looked further into this Walking Hot Spot matter…If I am right it has also a creepy aspect… not only are they offering WHS Server, but it also “provides carriers with the ability to manage and control subscriber accounts, authenticate Walking Hot Spot devices and clients, as well as collect subscriber usage information.”

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