His major was philosophy but his school was Stanford University in the heart of California?s Silicon Valley so it?s no wonder Hugh Bethell started his career at a software company writing programs.
The general manger and head of Baltimore-based Port Networks, a wireless Internet access provider, began in 1989 at Symantec Corp. in Cupertino, Calif., writing software programs for companies to manage data.
He worked in the West Coast software business until his wife, a lawyer, persuaded him to move to Washington, the mecca for lawyers, Bethell said.
After stints with a couple of start-up companies in the Washington and Baltimore region, Bethell launched Port Networks with a partner in the summer of 2002.
A sailing enthusiast who got his first sailboat at 9 years old, Bethell was inspired for Port Networks by a fellow boater who resided on his boat and needed Internet access.
“Port Networks is actually a play on words,” Bethell said from a company conference room on the 24th floor of Baltimore?s World Trade Center, overlooking the Inner Harbor.
The “port” in Port Networks refers to Internet “port” connection and also honors the fact that the company?s first clients were Baltimore marinas, Bethell said.
Port Networks provides Wi-Fi high-speed Internet access through a series of radio transmitters, receivers, amplifiers, converters and antennas to areas where laying phone lines or fiber optic cable would be too costly.
With antennas located on top of Baltimore?s World Trade Center and antennas on other downtown buildings, Port Networks can provide Internet access to any Wi-Fi-compatible computer within line-of-sight of the World Trade Center, HarborCourt Hotel, Anchorage Tower Condominiums, Hopkins House Apartments or the Baltimore Travel Plaza.
The company has more than 560 customers and expects to reach 1,000 by the end of the year, Bethell said.
Mario Cisneros, a systems engineer for Annapolis Technologies in Baltimore, said Bethell has personally helped solve glitches in Annapolis Technologies? wireless Internet service.
The company uses the Internet to upload documents for customers and needs reliable Internet service, Cisneros said.
“He has been able to keep his promise to me by providing fast and inexpensive, reliable Internet service.” Cisneros said.
Hugh R. Bethell
» First job: Direct marketing campaigns for Symantec
» Education: BA and MA in philosophy, Stanford University
» Best job perk: Seeing the city from our clients? rooftops
» Number of e-mails a day: 50 to 75
» Number of voice mails a day: 10 to 15
» Essential Web sites: www.wifinetnews.com, www.wi-fiplanet.com
» Career objective: To become CEO of a public company
» Favorite gadget: Toshiba PocketPC
» Hometown: Manchester, Mass.
» Birthdate: August 21, 1967
» Original aspiration: Newspaper publisher
» Sports/hobbies: Racing sailboats and running marathons
