Yesterday saw the arrival of another LinkNYC kiosk... as crews installed one on First Avenue near 14th Street... in proximity to two other LinkNYC kiosks right around the corner on 14th Street...
Not sure about the placement of these. There are four LinkNYCs on 14th Street between Second Avenue and Third Avenue ... yet they did keep a pay phone on the block...
Look for another kiosk soon on First Avenue at Fourth Street, among other locations ...
Meanwhile, there are grand plans for the LinkNYC network. MIT Technology Review had an article on the company behind Link a few weeks ago...
Link is poised to be far more than an advertising and Wi-Fi network, however. Intersection, the company that manages the Link projects in London and New York, is considering upgrading them to support everything from augmented reality to autonomous vehicles. “Phase One was about making sure we’re offering robust services to people,” says Intersection’s chief innovation officer, Colin O’Donnell. “Now we’re figuring out how we can leverage all the different data sets we have access to and make [this technology] as dynamic and responsive as it can be.”
Intersection’s ambitions bear attention because it is one of the few private firms that large cities have partnered with on high-profile public-information projects—and its digital technology is likely to spread to other major U.S. cities, such as Chicago, San Francisco, and Seattle, where it holds multiyear municipal and transit advertising contracts.
According to the article, there are currently 900 active kiosks in the city ... with plans for up to 7,500.
Plus the one just west in front of Crocodile Lounge🤦🏼♂️
ReplyDeleteI've never once used one of these. Is this program considered a success?
ReplyDeleteI have only seen derelicts use these (as have many, many others). Not to sound like a reactionary jerk, if there is any other way to, but these hubs are just enabling their laziness and lack of motivation to get a job. I seen these people and all they do is watch videos.
ReplyDeleteMaybe the bums using these things are providing ad revenue and useless info for NSA with their web viewing habits.
Amazing they have better phones than I do.
The hidden cameras at the top of the each kiosk will help with identifying he bums and derelicts that camp out on 14 street.
ReplyDelete"Not to sound like a reactionary jerk..."
ReplyDeleteI'm not a fan of the monoliths--they are physically and visually intrusive, though I am starting to ignore them like the elephant in the room--but I don't see how they enable anyone to not work any more than sitting in the park or library does.
@sophocles.
ReplyDeleteWhen the derelicts use them they turn them into lounge areas, one bum I caught in Midtown was laying down with his back up against it and snarled at me like an animal when I glanced at him. I guess it looks worse when they have access to a t.v. to go along with their makeshift sidewalks dwelling areas.
And even more worse considering the city doesn't have affordable or adequate supportive housing for these people that they prefer living in the gutter.
THese are surveillance stations. Never charge your phone here. They scan the hard drives for "security risks". We pay for it. Twice.
ReplyDelete