Maturation of the WiFi Market

I think we are reaching a stage where people are actually starting to depend on their wifi networks the way they do their wired ones. They expect blanket coverage everywhere. Network Admins are starting to actually trust these networks now as well.

How did I reach this conclusion? Well, I was told this by a very large healthcare organization. This company has over 60 thousand employees and hundreds of locations. I was teaching a class in WLAN management when a couple of router guys chuckled in the back of the room. You see, to them wifi was a part time gig. They managed the core. I would have said something however, I never had to. Another attendee, a real leader in the group, took over and said, "You wired guys want to chuckle but let me tell you, moving forward, wireless networking will be the primary access method for all new connections and applications."

I was stunned as this was a pretty hefty statement to make in front of a vendor (me).

And this is not the only place I heard this. I was recently at the headquarters for a major media company. I mean really major. The WLAN Admin Exec. said almost the exact same thing.

Are we reaching a milestone? I think so. I think mobile devices are pushing this forward. It was all fine and good that companies provide wifi for big ol' laptops but when people have an iPhone in their pocket and are surfing the web non-stop round the clock... Well, let's just say, people can get pretty demanding for something they never had before but are getting used to using everyday.

To illustrate my point, please watch this comedian from the Conan O'Brien show. His name is Louis CK and he is spot on. If you are impatient, tune to 2:16 for the particularly poignant part.


"Everything is amazing and nobody is happy"
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