“The federal government is currently holding spectrum that could be opened up for unlicensed use. In particular, there is a big chunk of spectrum in what is known as the 5 GHz band,” U.S. Representative Anna Eshoo (D-CA) and U.S. FCC Commissioner Ajit Pai write for Wired. “Its wide, contiguous channels allow for extremely fast connections—think open, five-lane highways, as opposed to single-lane service roads. And engineers have already worked out the technical aspects of making it operational. This spectrum is our country’s best bet for getting more unlicensed spectrum into consumers’ hands. Making this spectrum usable and ubiquitous could dramatically boost the speed and lower the price of consumer devices.”
“We’ve been working hard to do just that,” Eshoo and Pai write. “In the last two Congresses, Congresswoman Eshoo has introduced the Wi-Fi Innovation Act to expand unlicensed use of the 5 GHz band. And since 2012, Commissioner Pai has been calling on the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to open up the band. This is an issue with broad, bipartisan support on Capitol Hill, at the FCC, and across the country.”
“But progress hasn’t been fast enough,” Eshoo and Pai write. “It’s critical that the federal government press forward and open up the band. Because the Internet is increasingly becoming a mobile experience, we should work together to anticipate, rather than catch up with, consumer demand. Doing so will spark innovation and spur economic growth.”
Much more in the full article here.
MacDailyNews Take: As long as it can be done safely, push ahead!
My wifi within my home is pretty damn fast and I haven’t even got the most modern of devices. There are some duff areas in my home which could be improved, but ultimately most of my speed issues come from my internet connection.
Just curious what other countries are doing with that 5Ghz band?
5 GHz is in the Microwave band. It is used to cook your food.
… and it is also used for point-to-point communications such as satellite links and long distance terrestrial links — no mobile, and no broadcasting.
The dream of WiMax isn’t here yet, because microwave radiation does have potential for health effects when interference causes unexpected energy amplification and cooks the unfortunate object in the way.
WiFi 802.11a/h/j/n/ac is in the 5GHz area, in the U.S. 5.180 GHz thru 5.330 GHz and 5.490 GHz to 5.835 GHz. See “List of WLAN channels” https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_WLAN_channels#5.C2.A0GHz_.28802.11a.2Fh.2Fj.2Fn.2Fac.29.5B17.5D
If you agree with the headline, then you could be labeled a SOCIALIST by the label-pasters here on these forums.
As if America wasn’t from the very beginning semi-socialist in nature, from the very moment George Washington took command of a united Continental Army. These UNITED States each contributed to enable nationalized armed forces, fire brigades, libraries, community-funded health care, obligatory militia (or draft) enrollment, unified currency made stable by a chartered national bank, a national interstate highway system, national airway system, rural electrification, …. the list goes on.
It’s all subsidized by the taxpayer and at least in part overseen by federal management or enabled by federal funding. That is what is required to do the greatest good for the greatest number of people.
Thankfully sane people recognize the need for standards — an efficient infrastructure and national standards enabled the USA to become the strong nation it is today. A fractured collection of 50 states squabbling to demand unique states rights, each with its brand of “freedom”, would have relegated the colonies a weak group of corrupt oligarchic fiefdoms, not unlike the much of the rest of the planet.
Well I’m glad to see they have internet AND straw-man building lessons at your local mental facility.
I think you misunderstand (yea, I think it was the headline)
The story isn’t saying that the government should provide free WiFi, just open up the airways so companies can take advantage of the newly available bandwidth. (yea, that’s what government is suppose to do) Once businesses get the okay, they will move in.
Yes, we need fast internet.
But WiFi is not the speed limitation to faster Internet. Wifi 802.11ac already supports up to 433Mbps, it is the link to the Internet that is slower.
What newly available bandwidth? The 5 GHz band is already used for terrestrial communications. What Wired wants is that it be opened up for more mobile communications. But the world isn’t ready. The article clearly states that officials with the FCC and DOT are studying interference issues with mobile 5GHz devices.
I’d much rather that the experts figure out safe and reasonable rules, just like the FAA did with cell phones on airplanes, before they just let the wild west rush occur with no thought of safety or unanticipated effects harming the market or its users.
Or another example of how the the Fed gets blamed for doing the due diligence that companies today refuse to do is pharma. People whine that the FDA is too slow at approving new drugs, then they blame the FDA when people die or, just as bad, suffer side effects that come from mis-precriptions and patient misuse/self-medication. Pharma companies are famous for taking a drug intended to achieve one goal, which fails, then remarketing it instead to perform something else that was discovered in trials. But they don’t always repeat the trials to prove absence of tertiary effects. What people end up with is a drug whose primary intent isn’t proven, a secondary benefit is oversold, and tertiary side effects ignored until dosages are ramped up high enough for people to feel them. The whole western world is turning into a land of overmedicated zombies, but only the Fed is ever blamed.
TowerTone was obviously educated in one of the socialized education facilities crippled by the stratification of our society by uncaring politicians and ruthless businessmen, so please do not respond to his childish name calling.
CORRECTION: TowerTone was obviously educated in one of the FEW socialized education facilities that HAVE BEEN severely crippled by the stratification of our society by uncaring BOUGHT politicians and THE ruthless businessmen WHO BOUGHT THEM, so please do not respond to his childish name calling
sorry for not reading first….
So are you making an argument for or against socialism?
(cause you dam sure made one against whatever so-called education YOU’VE got…!)
Hey Mike, don’t try to redefine socialism to fit your fantasy. The Soviet Union was the best example of socialism that we have. That’s Bernie’s model, not some invented, Marxist history of America.
Or better try British, Swedish, French, etc socialism as opposed to the USSR which was Communism.
Communism is little more than Socialism with the limiter disconnected.
ResearrchTeacher:
The Soviets were not socialists. They were state capitalists with a twist of totalitarianism thrown in for good measure.
Wow. Clearly much more research you have to do, pal. I fear for the students you teach.
But asking the Feds to do something about crony capitalism (the real issue here) is so un-MDN like. After all, when the neocons finally take over (the prevailing attitude here) we can all exult in the might of capitalism and finally be free of the terror caused by a government elected to do right by its citizens and protect them from that which they cannot protect themselves alone.
That’s called the commonwealth. It’s typical of the beliefs of the founding fathers.