--- title: Smart Cities Challenge | Blog | Link Labs description: A Smart City is more than just a .gov landing page and a municipality’s CIO initiative. It is laying the groundwork for connecting its citizens and its infrastructure image: https://www.link-labs.com/hubfs/Imported%20sitepage%20images/pexels-photo-1036657-1-1.jpeg --- [![link-labs-logo-radial-2](https://www.link-labs.com/hubfs/link-labs-logo-radial-2.svg "link-labs-logo-radial-2")](https://www.link-labs.com/) [![link-labs-logo-radial-2](https://www.link-labs.com/hubfs/link-labs-logo-radial-2.svg "link-labs-logo-radial-2")](https://www.link-labs.com/) ** [![Book a Demo](https://no-cache.hubspot.com/cta/default/427771/598eabc0-7dd8-4d20-87dc-95a6fe8622ab.png)](https://cta-redirect.hubspot.com/cta/redirect/427771/598eabc0-7dd8-4d20-87dc-95a6fe8622ab) ** ![Smart Cities Challenge](https://www.link-labs.com/hubfs/Imported%20sitepage%20images/pexels-photo-1036657-1-1.jpeg) # Smart Cities Challenge Published March 22, 2015 “My City is smarter than your City.” This is what [Amsterdam](http://amsterdamsmartcity.com/), Singapore, London, Rio, [Seoul](http://newsroom.cisco.com/feature/1309662/Smart-City-Seoul?), and [many](http://www.berlin-partner.de/en/the-berlin-location/smart-city-berlin/) other cities are all trying to claim. At Link Labs, we are often invited to “Smart Cities” conferences or asked about customers who have deployed Smart City applications using our technology. While there is a lot to like in the [Smart](http://smartcities.ieee.org/) [Cities](http://www.ibm.com/smarterplanet/us/en/smarter_cities/overview/) [movement](http://cities.media.mit.edu/), sometimes when a catchphrase is overused, its meaning can be lost or different people can make different assumptions. [![Smart cities challenge photos](https://www.link-labs.com/hs-fs/hubfs/Imported_Blog_Media/34071208_m-300x200.jpg?width=320&name=34071208_m-300x200.jpg)](https://www.link-labs.com/hubfs/Imported_Blog_Media/34071208_m.jpg)A Smart City is more than just a .gov landing page and a municipality’s CIO initiative. It is laying the groundwork for connecting its citizens and its infrastructure, while allowing both flexibility and competition to flourish. This is easier said than done. If a city allows [Google Fiber](https://fiber.google.com/about/) to be installed, or a [wireless mesh network](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wireless_mesh_network) like Silver Spring Networks, or even something less proprietary like [ZigBee](http://www.zigbee.org/) or [DASH7](http://www.dash7-alliance.org/) it has the potential to be picking winners in a domain in which it may lack experience, and even if the chosen technology isn’t optimal for the city or the applications it is deploying, there is a strong sunk cost bias, and even without that bias, the marginal cost/benefit calculation of deploying something new on a suboptimal network might outweigh the cost/benefit around building a better one. Beyond the propensity to pick winners, the other problem with municipally-backed smart city initiatives is that too often they are tied to economic development goals or political incentives. At Link Labs we believe the most important question any business should ask when developing an application is “[How am I solving my customer’s problems](https://www.link-labs.com/5-critical-questions-ask-bringing-iot-idea-market/)?” A city’s customer is its citizens. While a [city-wide WiFi mesh network](http://www.muniwireless.com/2008/06/03/oklahoma-city-deploys-largest-muni-wifi-mesh-network/) may make headlines, the value really lies how the [meters](http://www.muellersystems.com/), [street lights](http://www.dimonoff.com/), [emergency response vehicles](http://www.cisco.com/web/strategy/transportation/response.html), and [trash cans](http://www.enevo.com/) all make the average person’s day easier or safer. There are lots of both [anecdotal evidence](http://time.com/72281/american-housing/) and [hard data](http://www.citylab.com/work/2014/10/the-new-global-centers-for-talent/381487/) that point to the fact that cities remain key centers of culture, technology, and innovation in both the United States and around the world. Making these cities better places to live by using inexpensive and scalable connectivity solutions like [Symphony](https://www.link-labs.com/symphony-link/) to solve specific, real-world problems seems like a good first step toward making a city “smart.” It is also important to remember that these innovations aren’t limited to cities. There is plenty of value that can be unlocked by connecting rural applications like [agriculture](https://gigaom.com/2013/10/17/the-agriculture-business-is-a-sleeping-giant-for-companies-building-the-internet-of-things/), or even [helping transform suburbs](http://grist.org/cities/heres-the-right-way-to-make-transit-and-density-work-in-the-suburbs/) in a meaningful way. If you have a moment, [download a Whitepaper](https://info.link-labs.com/whitepaper-long-range-wireless), or [drop us a line](https://info.link-labs.com/contact). Share Article: - [LinkedIn](http://www.linkedin.com/shareArticle?mini=true&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.link-labs.com%2Fblog%2Fsmart-cities-challenge&title=Smart%20Cities%20Challenge&source=leadquizzes.com) - [Twitter](http://twitter.com/home?status=Smart%20Cities%20Challenge+https%3A%2F%2Fwww.link-labs.com%2Fblog%2Fsmart-cities-challenge) - [Facebook](http://www.facebook.com/share.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.link-labs.com%2Fblog%2Fsmart-cities-challenge&title=Smart%20Cities%20Challenge) ![Jennifer Halstead](https://www.link-labs.com/hubfs/Untitled%20design%20(2).png) [LinkedIn](https://www.linkedin.com/in/jennifer-halstead-925913196/) ### Written by [Jennifer Halstead](https://www.link-labs.com/blog/author/jennifer-halstead) Jennifer Halstead, MBA, CPA brings more than 20 years industry experience to Link Labs. She began her career in finance within the pharmaceutical industry and has continued in both public accounting and private companies. She passed the CPA exam with the 3rd highest score in the state and completed her MBA with an accounting concentration (summa cum laude). Jennifer has worked with several software companies and has led multiple venture financing, merger and acquisitions deals. She has helped companies expand internationally and has managed the finance department of a startup to 33 consecutive quarters of growth prior to acquisition. After the acquisition, she served as the Controller of Dell Software Group’s Data Protection Division where she managed a portfolio of multiple hardware and software products to scale and achieve over triple-digit growth worldwide in 18 months. Jennifer brings a depth of experience and leadership to the Link Labs team. ## Related Blogs Asset Tracking, BLE Asset Management Bluetooth Low Energy, Featured, Asset Tracking, supply chain, Bluetooth LE, equipment tracking, iot solutions, iot technology, Real-time location services, Asset Tracking Solutions, supply chain operations, supply chain visibility tools, end to end supply chain ## [Link Labs: 12 Years of Innovation in Tracking and Logistics](https://www.link-labs.com/blog/link-labs-12-years-of-innovation-in-tracking-and-logistics) [Read](https://www.link-labs.com/blog/link-labs-12-years-of-innovation-in-tracking-and-logistics) Asset Tracking, BLE Asset Management Bluetooth Low Energy, Asset Tracking, supply chain, Bluetooth LE, equipment tracking, iot solutions, iot technology, Real-time location services, Asset Tracking Solutions, supply chain operations, supply chain visibility tools, end to end supply chain ## [National Supply Chain Day: How Link Labs Is Transforming Visibility from Warehouse to World](https://www.link-labs.com/blog/national-supply-chain-day-how-link-labs-is-transforming-visibility-from-warehouse-to-world) [Read](https://www.link-labs.com/blog/national-supply-chain-day-how-link-labs-is-transforming-visibility-from-warehouse-to-world) Asset Tracking, BLE Asset Management Bluetooth Low Energy, Asset Tracking, Bluetooth LE, equipment tracking, iot solutions, iot technology, Real-time location services, Healthcare Asset Tracking, Healthcare RTLS, Healthcare Logistics, Asset Tracking Solutions ## [Never Lose Track of Medical Equipment Again](https://www.link-labs.com/blog/never-lose-track-of-medical-equipment) [Read](https://www.link-labs.com/blog/never-lose-track-of-medical-equipment) Subscribe to Link Labs' blog weekly update! 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