The WifiForward Coalition was launched earlier today in a conference call with reporters. The Coalition includes a variety of private and public sector organizations including the American Library Association, Comcast, Google, Microsoft and several others. More information about the coalition is available at www.wififorward.org.

The following statement concerning the launch of WifiForward can be attributed to John Windhausen, Executive Director of the Schools, Health & Libraries Broadband (SHLB) Coalition (pronounced “SHELL-bee Coalition”):

The SHLB Coalition is very pleased to join as one of the founding members of WifiForward. Libraries, schools and other anchor institutions are enormous users of unlicensed Wi-Fi spectrum. Wi-Fi access to the Internet has become a valuable conduit for accessing homework assignments, job-training videos, digital media, medical records, and other educational on-line services. Congestion over existing Wi-Fi spectrum is an increasing concern as schools and libraries are integrating technologies such as smartphones and tablets into the day-do-day services they provide to their communities. We welcome the opportunity to participate with both private and public sector organizations to promote the availability of more unlicensed Wi-Fi spectrum.

The SHLB Coalition is a broad-based coalition of non-profit and for-profit organizations that share the goal of providing anchor institutions and their communities with open, affordable, high-capacity broadband. Enhancing the broadband capabilities of community anchor institutions promotes economic growth and enables the most vulnerable segments of our population to be equal participants in the 21st century society and economy.

For further information, please contact, John Windhausen, Executive Director of the SHLB Coalition, at (202) 256-9616 or jwindhausen@shlb.org, or visit us at www.shlb.org.