New Yorkers know the end of summer is upon us when the New York State Fair opens every year at the end of August in centrally-located Syracuse. But at this year’s fair, Time Warner Cable has also made it clear the season for its 4G mobile broadband service has also come to at least a temporary end.

Fierce Cable’s Steve Donohue noticed big changes at the cable company exhibit:

When I attended the New York State Fair outside of Syracuse last year, the Intelligo mobile hotspot–which Time Warner Cable offered to subscribers through a partnership with Clearwire –was one of the hottest pieces of technology that it had on display. Time Warner Cable said that it tripled the number of 4G wireless hotspots that it sold at the fair in 2011 compared to 2010. Here in Central New York, where subscribers don’t have access to the Wi-Fi networks that Time Warner Cable, Comcast and Cablevision offer in the New York area, apparently there was a significant demand for mobile hotspots.

‘Intelligone’

This year, the mobile broadband technology is all gone. Both Time Warner Cable and Comcast are no longer selling access to Clearwire’s 4G WiMAX service marketed under each cable company’s brand. Once it became clear they were partnering up with Verizon Wireless to sell each other’s products, the days of Clearwire were numbered.

Both cable companies are still supporting existing Clearwire mobile broadband customers, but for how long nobody is certain. Verizon Wireless’ products have not yet appeared on the western or central New York regional Time Warner Cable websites, but may be forthcoming soon.

Meanwhile, Time Warner’s push this year is on home automation and security. The company has been test marketing its IntelligentHome service in Rochester for quite awhile and has now expanded to other upstate areas. The service offers a respectable suite of traditional security products apps ranging from watching your pets over webcams to controlling your home’s heating and cooling system from remote locations.

In 2010, Time Warner Cable featured celebrity Mike O’Malley at the Fair to shake hands and sign autographs. This year, they have a player and “spokesmodel” from the Syracuse Crunch, a minor league pro hockey team. Time Warner Cable also hired a juggler on a unicycle to attract crowds to their pavilion.

Stuck with snail slow DSL, spotty Wi-Fi, or usage-capped 3G and need faster access? A new project from Connectify is now attracting funding from the Kickstarter project to deliver a new broadband connection combiner that can turn up to 10 different wireless and wired connections into one super-sized broadband pipe.

Connectify’s Dispatch software will manage connections ranging from dialup to Ethernet through a hotspot application that can be run on a desktop PC. The Philadelphia company has been pushing the project primarily to the speed obsessed, demonstrating outdoor connections to multiple open Wi-Fi networks, 3G and 4G mobile broadband that when combined deliver more than 80Mbps of download speed. But the software may also prove useful as a connections management tool that can seamlessly switch from free Wi-Fi when your connection becomes intolerably slow to a different pipe — 3G or 4G wireless broadband — all without missing a beat.

With two weeks left in the Kickstarter campaign, Connectify has raised just over $33,000 of the $50,000 goal. The company recently sweetened the deal early investors get, perhaps to attract an additional burst of funding. Those investing $50 or more will receive a lifetime license with unlimited software upgrades forever.

Some mobile carriers are experimenting with similar technology, mostly to move customers automatically off of their mobile networks to Wi-Fi, where available. Others are experimenting with technology that would allow simultaneous connections to Wi-Fi and 4G networks, moving different types of data across one or both simultaneously.

[flv width=”640″ height=”380″]http://www.phillipdampier.com/video/Connectify Dispatch.mp4[/flv]

Introducing Connectify Dispatch, which can turn multiple slow broadband connections into one fast one. (4 minutes)

Free Wi-Fi is always popular and Fort Wayne, Ind. is welcoming news that Frontier Communications intends to install and operate a downtown network of hotspots offering what local newspapers characterize as “free access.”

The area being outfitted with wireless Internet is bordered by Clay Street to the east, Broadway to the west, Headwaters Park to the north and Lewis Street to the south, according to city officials.

Frontier says it plans to offer 512kbps access on most hotspots, 1Mbps service on others, with a limited number operating at still higher speeds where fiber optics are available.

But Frontier’s Wi-Fi networks in other cities have some important considerations for those expecting wide open, free access.

Free has its limits.

In Rochester, N.Y., free access hotspots are extremely limited in number and offer very slow speeds (often close to dial-up) to entice users to upgrade to a premium Wi-Fi speed plan starting at $9.99 per month for current Frontier customers, $30 a month for non-customers. The vast majority of hotspots only offer five minutes a week of free access.

In Terre Haute, free access is available to only the first 100 users connected to the network. All others are required to pay. Those who do choose to subscribe can only use one device at a time.

The scheduled rollout of Frontier Wi-Fi in Fort Wayne has yet to be announced.

Just in time for the forthcoming Democratic National Convention, Time Warner Cable has launched TWC Wi-Fi in uptown Charlotte and inside the convention venue — the Time Warner Cable Arena.  Republican House Speaker Thom Tillis, who has collected tens of thousands of dollars in campaign contributions from large telecom companies, including Time Warner Cable, was on hand to help celebrate.

More than 90 hot spots around the city are being fired up, and during the convention (Aug. 27-Sept. 7) anyone will be able to connect for free.

Before and after the Democrats arrive in town, the network is available free only to paying Time Warner Cable customers with standard (10Mbps) Internet service or faster or customers with Business Class service. The cable company claims that covers the “vast majority” of its broadband customers.

Tillis

Most of the hotspots are in and around Center City, South End, Myers Park, Dilworth and Midtown.

Non-customers can purchase access at prices starting at $2.95 per hour.

Customers can connect using their Time Warner Cable e-mail address and password.

Based on comments from local residents, many are convinced the government shelled out the money for the service, or customers ultimately will with the next round of rate increases. In fact, this is Time Warner Cable’s attempt to boost subscriber loyalty by offering broadband while on the go.

No government money is financing this particular project, although several local and state officials were on hand to help cut the ribbon on the service, including the Republican Speaker of the House Thom Tillis, who earlier voted to block community-owned broadband in North Carolina. Tillis has deposited $37,000 in campaign contributions during the 2010-2011 cycle from large telecom companies including Time Warner Cable, despite running unopposed.

Verizon Wireless has settled a complaint brought by consumer group Free Press that accused the wireless carrier of violating federal rules allowing customers to use their phones as mobile hotspots or for tethering with the apps of their choosing.

The Federal Communications Commission announced Verizon had agreed to pay $1.25 million to the U.S. Treasury for violating the conditions of its 700MHz “C”-Block licenses, which carry the provision that Verizon not “deny, limit, or restrict” customers from using the applications or devices of their choosing.

Instead of abiding by those rules, Verizon Wireless reportedly pressured Google to disable and restrict tethering applications in the Google Play Store, forcing most customers to purchase Verizon’s Mobile Hotspot/Tethering service which, at the time, was priced at an additional $30 a month. Verizon Wireless’ recent plan changes now include tethering and mobile hotspot service for no additional monthly fee, although customers are subject to usage caps and overlimit fees.

“The FCC sent a strong signal to the market that companies cannot ignore their pro-consumer obligations,” said Free Press policy director Matt Wood. “Unfortunately, the fact that Verizon worked to block these apps in the first place is a clear indication that wireless providers have a strong incentive to discriminate against certain content and applications, an incentive that continues to threaten online freedom and innovation.”

Free Press notes consumers of other carriers lack the same protection Verizon’s customers have under the law. Verizon agreed to the more consumer-friendly language as part of its purchase of the frequencies where the company operates its 4G network.