Bill Gates consider that U.S. communications regulators should free up more spectrum for Wi-Fi broadband. Microsoft's boss said that "the white space" spectrum of vacant analog television airwaves should be used to expand access of wireless broadband.
"We're hopeful that will be made available so that Wi-Fi can explode in terms of its usage, even out into some of these less dense areas (of the United States) where distance has been a big problem for Wi-Fi," said Gates.
Microsoft sustains the idea along a group technology companies that has been lobbying the U.S. Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to allow unlicensed use of white space spectrum. Google Inc, Dell, Intel Corp, Hewlett-Packard Co and the north American unit of Philips Electronics are part of the group. However the FCC regulators doesn't agree right away, as idea of freeing up the spectrum is opposed by U.S. broadcasters. They fear that spreading the Wi-Fi networks could cause interference with TV broadcasts.
Although a solution might appear. The group came with a proposal to create two categories of airwaves users: personal and enterprise. Thus, the devices would include a technology that identifies unused spectrum and avoid interference.
Currently FCC is testing the prototype devices and considers accepting the proposal.
via Yahoo News
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