Study Shows Inequalities in “White-Spaces” Wireless

From Tom Simonite in MIT’s Technology Review:

A person living in upstate Michigan may gain significantly more from the death of analog television than someone living in New York City–at least, as far as long-range wireless Internet is concerned, a study suggests. On November 4, 2008, the Federal Communications Commission voted to allow the “white spaces” in the radio spectrum that were freed up by the analog television switch-off to be used for long-distance wireless Internet connectivity. This spectrum will be unlicensed, meaning any standards-compliant device can use it.

The most detailed analysis yet of the potential of these white spaces for long-distance wireless Internet has now been published by researchers at the University of California, Berkeley. Their models illustrate how the interaction of population density, television stations, and economics will determine what consumers ultimately get.

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