BigShinyThing

The FT reports today that Google and Earthlink have beaten five other bidders for a contract to blanket San Francisco with WiFi coverage. The ‘catch’ is that users will be tracked to within 100 or 200 feet and beamed ads from local businesses in exchange for wireless internet access.

The service is likely to take six to eight months before it’s up and running and expect lots of debate re the privacy implications of proximity advertising before then. As the FT points out, this kind of marketing has been possible since the proliferation of bluetooth on mobile phones but — with the exception of kids bluejacking each other — very little has been done to exploit it commercially. Google is already teaching people about the possibilities of location-based tech with Google Earth and the already notorious Gawker Stalker Maps (which uses Google Maps to flag celebrity sitings in New York) — and what better way for local businesses to find customers? Beats the ‘Golf Sale Here’ sign anyday.