If Google's bid to provide San Francisco with free citywide WiFi succeeds, local newspapers will join the ranks of those (such as ISPs) being threatened by the search giant's expansion efforts, writes MediaPost. The papers generate much of their ad revenue from local businesses and could end up competing directly with Google. "Hop onto a free Google hot spot, and ads may tell you about a good lunch deal around the corner, a sale at a nearby sporting goods store, cut-rate discounts at a local electronics shop," according to one local observer.

Craigslist - a global online classifieds site founded in San Francisco - has already cost newspapers in the San Francisco Bay area $50-$65 million in employment advertising revenue alone, according to one study.

According to an industry observer, local papers and Yellow Pages companies still have one big advantage: their relationships with local advertisers and local sales forces - but "Google could certainly afford to buy a Yellow Pages company if it wanted to."