ECOtality will utilize the Sprint Command Center, across its nationwide system of residential, commercial, and public charging stations to control Machine-to-Machine (M2M) provisioning, billing, device, service management, and to run the Blink Network.

ENGADGET: ECOtality teams with Sprint to connect Blink EV charging network

In some parts of the US it is easy to set up in business as a fee-charging ATM provider, all you need is a few hundred dollars for a second-hand cash machine and an electronic link to the cash machine network.

BBC: NEWS | Business | UK 'risks' US-style bank charges

Randy Stanley, who recently leased a Nissan Leaf and has a bumper sticker declaring, "This machine starves terrorists, " calls it a "chicken-or-the-egg" scenario -- charging stations won't pop up unless there's demand, but some drivers are reluctant to get an electric car until they see more public stations.

CNN: Public charging stations fuel desire for electric cars