The FCC's Coming 700 MHz Auction

By Dennis D. McDonald

Soon the FCC in the U.S. will authorize the auction of a huge chunk of radio spectrum. At stake is whether the existing giants in the wireless industry will gobble up this spectrum that is being freed by the switch to digital TV,  or whether principles of "open access" will be applied to mandate certain types of uses and flexibility in how the spectrum is managed.

Folks like Verizon want the spectrum so they can build new services. Public access advocates, together with interesting bed-fellows such as Google, want more openness and flexibility.

I've gathered some links together that provide some background on the issues and the resulting high-stakes debate. A key issue is the manner in which first responders and public safety agencies and personnel will get access to and use this spectrum. (If you can't see the Grazr window below, click here to see my del.icio.us feed.)