Next February, US TV stations are expected to switch to all-digital broadcasts, creating a large vacancy of the country's "white spaces" - the radio airwaves that have long carried analogue TV signals. As a result, Google and other technological companies such as Dell, Microsoft and Intel are advocating that the unused spectrum, which is currently only used at one-fourth of its capacity, be used for unlicensed wireless internet connections.Google has been chasing the white space spectrum for a while, but has recently started a public advocacy campaign, which includes the Free the Airwaves website, allowing consumers to learn about the campaign and its potential benefits, but Google is also upfront about its self-interest in the campaign.
"Google has a clear business interest in expanding access to the web," Minnie Ingersoll, a Product Manager in Google's Alternative Access Team, wrote on Google's Public Policy blog. "There's no doubt that if these airwaves are opened up to unlicensed use, more people will be using the Internet. That's certainly good for Google (not to mention many of our industry peers) but we also think that it's good for consumers."
The campaign is hoping to put pressure on Congress and the Federal Communications Commission, or FCC, to approve the plan, but The National Association of Broadcasters and wireless microphone companies have opposed it, saying it could cause interference with broadcasts and their wireless devices.
According to news site CNet, The FCC recently performed technical tests at an NFL game between the Washington Redskins and Buffalo Bills to see if this was the case, but deemed the results inconclusive.
Opponents of the white space campaign however, were quick to point out their views of the tests. Shure, a large microphone manufacturer, said in a press release that the spectrum-sensing white-space devices caused "harmful interference to wireless microphones" during the live event. Adding:
"Simply stated, the prototype devices were unable to consistently identify operating wireless microphones or distinguish occupied from unoccupied TV channels," said Mark Brunner, Shure's Senior Director of Public and Industry Relations. "More troubling, the devices failed to detect the presence of wireless microphones when switched on - an occurrence that takes place multiple times during any NFL game."
The FCC is expected to make a decision on the issue soon, which will no doubt be watched closely by all concerned parties to see if it will result in the creation of what Google has dubbed "Wi-Fi 2.0."
