White Space Testing to Begin

The FCC is set to begin testing white space broadcasts for interference with current technology, such as wireless microphones. The NFL and ESPN – who are against licensing the white spaces – want the tests to be conducted in a sports stadium of their selection. The National Association of Broadcasters, fearing competition and supposedly also fearing interference, opposes any use of white spaces. The White Space Coalition (including Google and Microsoft) want white spaces to be free for anyone to use at whim. As I’ve said before, all this political wrangling could be avoided if the spectrum were simply auctioned off.

For more information, check out Drew Clark’s history of the white space debate and Ryan Radia’s analysis of the issue.