With payphones becoming ever more obsolete thanks to the worldwide proliferation of mobile phones, cities everywhere will have to deal with what to do with all of those useless phone booths and boxes. New York City has come up with a plan to turn the antiquated technology into WiFi hot spots.

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CityBridge, which is in partnership with New York state,  wants to remove all of the 6,400 payphones in New York City and replace them with LinkNYC terminals. A LinkNYC terminal is a payphone 2.0 - offering the same phoning functionality nationwide - but with additional uses to benefit everyone in the digital age.

Citizens will be able to gain 24/7 access to 1Gbps encrypted municipal WiFi network, if the Link is within 150 feet. Given this is the first iteration, in the near future this could mean an alternative to paying for broadband.

That's not the only use for the Link either, the terminal will allow free calls to anyone in the U.S.; a tablet interface built on Android, offering access to city services and directions; free charging for any mobile devices and easy access to emergency services.

CityBridge will work with partners Qualcomm, TITAN, Control Group, Comark, Transit Wireless and Antenna to create the Link. It will be built in New York City, offering 100 to 150 jobs for engineers and manufacturing experts.

The team believes advertising will keep them profitable, with 10,000 Links set to deploy in the next six years. The company has a 15-year contract with the state, in order to build and maintain the Links, making sure they remain profitable and usable.

Advertising revenue should hit $500 million in 12 years of service. CityBridge will use dynamic advertising and public-service announcements, to interest users. It could also use location-based advertisements in commercial zones.

This is not the first time CityBridge has worked on a project in the U.S. involving new terminals. Normally, the projects fall into financial disrepair and have to be scaled back, but NYC is committed to making this a fully fledged service.

TagsNYC, CityBridge, LinkNYC, municipal WiFi network, public WiFi, payphones, Mayor Bill de Blasio