Mountain View, California-based Internet giant Google has launched a public  information campaign called "Free The Airwaves", enlisting the help of consumers to pressure the United States Federal Communications Commission into approving a "white-space" plan that would allow high speed wireless Internet access on unused portions of airwaves between television signals beginning in late 2009, after broadcasters convert to digital delivery. Proposed Plan Would Use Vacant White-Space Spectrum The new Google effort included a Web site where consumers could sign a petition urging FCC  members to approve unlicensed use of the radio spectrum known as white-space, the company announced Monday in a message posted on two of its official blog sites. The FCC has been testing a system it is expected to consider approving by the end of the year, a "faster, low-cost" wireless Internet plan that if not allowed to go forward could result in the U.S. "squandering one of its most valuable natural resources," according to Google alternative access team member Minnie Ingersoll, writing Monday on the company's public policy blog. The plan backed by Google, built on technology under development since 2002, attempts to allay longstanding signal interference concerns from broadcasters and sports leagues. "The spectrum is way too valuable to be wasted," Richard S. Whitt, a Google lawyer specializing in media and telecommunications law, said in March, and noted that some 95 percent of so-called white-space surrounding United States television signals was currently unused. "Google is a strong believer in the potential of this spectrum to bring Internet access to more Americans," Whitt added. The future of the plan envisioned by Google remained uncertain, as tests conducted by the FCC over the past eight months have not gone as well as the Internet search leader had predicted. On the new Free the Airwaves Web site Google said it doesn't want the FCC to approve a plan that doesn't work, but insisted that the technology to make the system it envisions work is fully functional. Intel And Google Join Others In Supporting Wireless Plan Adoption "The FCC will not, and should not, allow any device to be sold unless it's proven not to interfere with these signals," Google said on the new site. Offering what it said was "proof that wireless spectrum can be opened up without harming existing broadcasts," Google pointed to a twenty-plus-year history of a similar program operating successfully within the same range of wireless bandwidth. "Millions of wireless microphones have been using this  spectrum for decades without any major interference with TV broadcasts," Google said. Google has proposed a plan that would sense when portions of the white-space spectrum need to be used by the government or military, and has supported and expanded a plan proposed in 2007 by Motorola that would ensure high-speed wireless access does not interfere with television and wireless microphone signals. Certain businesses using wireless microphones have joined some broadcasters in expressing concern that Internet access provided by white-space spectrum could cause signal interference or interruption, such as the National Football League, which has speculated about the possible dangers of "debilitating interference" from such uses. Should the FCC allow the white-space use Google, Microsoft and others are pressuring for, it "continues to be a guaranteed recipe for producing interference and should not be allowed under any circumstances," according to the National Association of Broadcasters executive vice president and spokesman Dennis Wharton. Broadcasters Urge Patience Until Digital Transformation Complete Last year Wharton said his group wanted the FCC to wait until the transition to digital television signals was complete before taking on the white-space issues. "There are serious interference issues with unlicensed devices," Wharton said. "Our suggestion to the FCC is, let's get through the analog transition to digital TV before we suggest introducing unlicensed devices onto airwaves that could  cause disruption to millions of TV viewers," added Wharton. Some concerts also make use of the white-space, and oppose plans that might cause interference, as do certain other professional and college sports organizations. The FCC is expected to offer the results of its tests in September, the next step before ending a battle between advocates of unlicensed white-space use and those hoping to see the current spectrum left alone. Google has argued that denying the plan would amount to "broken policies" that would "stifle innovation that could drive competition and drop prices," a view the Mountain View company is not alone in holding. Intel has also lobbied heavily for passage of the proposed plan. Along with the online petition, the new Google site offered a number of short video testimonials from consumers supporting FCC approval of the open wireless plan, many of them rural residents who have been unable to receive low cost broadband Internet access. Google also invited visitors to the new site to film and submit their own videos in support the white-space wireless plan. Google Says Plan Would Increase Broadband Access To Rural And Low-Income Areas The white-space spectrum, which is located between channels 2 and 51 on televisions receiving traditional analog broadcast signals, has the potential to carry mobile Internet traffic at significantly  higher speeds than most present systems, and with a broader coverage area in the U.S. Should the FCC approve open access to the white-space spectrum, Internet speeds of gigabits-per-second could be possible across the U.S., with signals well-suited to traveling long distances into rural areas and through buildings and other obstacles. Google said the proposed plan would benefit "underserved rural and low-income areas," where some people "have no access to broadband at all." Calling the wireless plan "a better way forward" the new Google Free the Airwaves effort Web site says the proposed plan will, if approved by the FCC, "provide affordable, high-speed wireless Internet connectivity nationwide," and said that it could "ignite new and undreamed of wireless technologies." Some broadcasters have said the plan would interfere with television signals, and have pressured the FCC to reject the proposed system. "The only way we operate as a business is if our viewers get a clear television picture. Given the fact that there's been a series of failures [in testing] at the FCC it doesn't give us a lot of comfort," Dennis Wharton, a spokesman for the National Association of Broadcasters said recently in a Wall Street Journal report. Google Urges Consumers To "Free The Airwaves" With FCC Push Google's new Free the Airwaves site sought to ease such concerns. "Engineers have developed extremely accurate technologies which make it possible to benefit from this spectrum while fully protecting the licensed services of television broadcasters and wireless microphones," Google noted on the new site Monday. Appealing to consumers who may not be familiar with how the proposed system would work, Google  described the white-space plan as a way to put the "fuzzy static between channels on the old TVs" to good use. "You don't need to be a telecommunications expert to understand that freeing the 'white spaces' has the potential to transform wireless Internet as we know it," Google said. "If you care about the future of the Internet, now is the time to take action," Google said of its latest effort to "bring users together around this important issue." In order for wireless innovation to continue, "the Federal Communications Commission must allow unlicensed use of this spectrum," Google said, and called the effort it initiated Monday "a call to action for everyday users." Google made clear that it stood to benefit from FCC approval of the plan, and noted that while it "has a clear business interest in expanding access to the web," the U.S. could find its position in the world of high technology at risk if the plan is not adopted. "In just the last few years, the U.S. has dropped from 3rd to 16th in worldwide broadband adoption," Google noted, and said that failure to expand broadband wireless access "threatens our nation's ability to compete in today's global economy." Related Links:
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