A huge chunk of wireless spectrum -- the 700 MHz spectrum originally allocated to analog TV -- will soon become available. This is great spectrum with excellent building penetration capabilities. There is a possibility for significant innovation with this spectrum -- something other than the existing iron control by large wireless carriers. Nancy Scola nicely summarizes the issue and simple things you can do push the FCC to do the right thing.
From Nancy's post, here are some of the things that could happen with that spectrum:
A coalition of groups including Public Knowledge, Free Press, and the New America Foundation detailed basic principles the 700 MHz process should follow. They want to encourage small innovators to have a fighting chance in the process by keeping the process anonymous and excluding the big telecom companies like AT&T and Verizon. Licensees would have to use the spectrum they get and agree to principles of wireless neutrality. Perhaps not surprisingly, Google has a clever new plan for the auction's mechanics. Spectrum allocation today is inefficient -- small chunks of it go unused or underused all the time. Google's plan is similar to their AdSense's method of on-the-fly leasing of micro-bits of online real estate. Google Spectrum would let licensees release small parts of unused spectrum to other innovators.
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