Original URL: http://www.theregister.co.uk/2008/06/23/fcc_unveils_free_wireless_plan/
FCC preps puritanical broadband
(Semi-)Advanced Wireless Services
Posted in Telecoms, 23rd June 2008 22:47 GMT
Free webcast: Service level monitoring and management
It's official. FCC boss Kevin Martin wants a free US-wide wireless broadband network. And he wants it equipped with "family-friendly" content filters.
On Friday, as expected (http://www.theregister.co.uk/2008/05/27/fcc_may_auction_aws_iii_band/), the US Federal Communications Commission formally unveiled (PDF) (http://hraunfoss.fcc.gov/edocs_public/attachmatch/DOC-283120A1.pdf) a free wireless plan for a portion of the American airwaves known as the Advanced Wireless Services (AWS) band. Under the plan, the commission would auction off the spectrum between 2155- and 2180-MHz on the US dial, and the winning bidder would have no choice but to plant a free network on up to 25 per cent of that 25-MHz.
This network would offer open-access (http://www.theregister.co.uk/2008/05/06/google_renews_open_access_battle/) to any application and any device. It would provide download speeds of at least 768kbps. And it would include some sort of "network-based filtering mechanism...in order to protect children and families."
Obviously, the FCC has taken a shine to the folks at M2Z Networks. In May 2006, this well-connected start-up asked the commission if it could license a slightly smaller chunk of spectrum (2155-2175MHz, aka the AWS-3 band) for a free broadband network. The FCC eventually said no (http://www.theregister.co.uk/2007/09/05/fcc_rejects_m2z_networks_wireless_application_after_comment_google/), but following a lawsuit (http://www.theregister.co.uk/2007/09/08/m2z_networks_to_bring_legal_action_against_fcc/) from the start-up, Kevin Martin's new plan bears an unmistakable resemblance to M2Z's original application.
In its application, for instance, M2Z said that its free ad-driven network would reach at least 50 per cent of the US within four years and 95 per cent within a decade. The FCC has now turned this timetable into a requirement for the winner of its AWS auction.
The main difference is the auction bit. M2Z wanted to license the AWS-3 band directly - without an auction. Plus, the commission has tacked on an extra 5MHz (2175-2180) from the AWS-2 band.
The commission is now taking public comments (PDF) (http://hraunfoss.fcc.gov/edocs_public/attachmatch/FCC-08-158A1.pdf) on its proposal. And you can expect vehement objections from the big-name American cellcos - not to mention free speech advocates.
You can bet the cellcos will spew nothing but FUD. The likes of Verizon and AT&T see the US airwaves as their undeniable birthright - and they have no interest in providing free wireless access. But the speech advocates deserve a listen. The FCC hasn't specified what it wants to filter with those content filters, but we have a feeling this could go very wrong. After all, the FCC's puritanical ways continue to make a mockery (http://www.theregister.co.uk/2008/01/28/fcc_sends_kiddies_to_nude_youtube_video/) of US television. ®