netBlazr’s cooperative broadband network was highlighted last night, as it won the Best Bootstrapped Start-up Award from the Massachusetts Innovation & Technology Exchange (MITX) Innovation Awards. More than 500 professionals attended the ceremony held at the Westin Waterfront in South Boston.
Besting hundreds of nominees, netBlazr was chosen for its “freemium” business model that delivers high-speed, secure, and reliable broadband to small and medium businesses at a fraction of the cost (free for many) of traditional internet service providers. netBlazr radios beam 100 Mbps broadband signals from one co-op member window to another. Its network performs better and expands coverage with each new member joining, so netBlazr is rapidly spreading throughout Boston.
“With more and more businesses signing our “wait-list” to connect once we reach their neighborhood, I wouldn’t be surprised if we’re nationwide in a few years”, says Jim Hanley, co-founder and CEO of netBlazr. “As businesses realize and understand how much more affordable and reliable our broadband cooperative is, I’m confident that our model will spread like wildfire”, he adds.
netBlazr is also a 2011 finalist in the MassChallenge $1 Million Competition and Business Plan Accelerator.