San Francisco ? Google Inc. wants to connect all of San Francisco to the Internet with a free wireless service, creating a springboard for the online search engine leader to leap into the telecommunications industry.

The Mountain View, Calif.-based company filed an application late Friday to provide wireless, or “WiFi,” service that would enable anyone in San Francisco to connect to the Internet.

Google submitted its bid in response to a request from Mayor Gavin Newsom, who is looking for a company to finance a free wireless network to lower the financial barriers to Internet access in his city.

More than a dozen other bidders are competing with Google.