The Spectrum Crunch: America: Your wireless airwaves are full!

[dud]

This thread is dedicated to all of those threads related to cell service, charges, bandwidth capping, etc. The bottom line is that unless God creates a whole lot more spectrum ... it is only going to get worse, a LOT worse. Part of my work relates to spectrum management and I've predicted this problem would get worse for years as the Government has sold off a LOT of it's spectrum (DoD) to the cell companies and requiring narrow-banding in those bands that it chooses to retain.

If you depend on wireless communications in your daily life prepare for higher costs, queuing and possibly lower quality-of-service.


http://money.cnn.com/2012/02/21/technology/spectrum_crunch/?npt=NP1&hpt=hp_c1


"The U.S. mobile phone industry is running out of the airwaves necessary to provide voice, text and Internet services to its customers.

The problem, known as the "spectrum crunch," threatens to increase the number of dropped calls, slow down data speeds and raise customers' prices. It will also whittle down the nation's number of wireless carriers and create a deeper financial divide between those companies that have capacity and those that don't."

(The article continues ...)

 

[KLin]

Time to go back to landlines!

 

[Texashiker]

Part of my work relates to spectrum management

Then you should know the FCC is part of the problem.

We have plenty of frequencies to increase bandwidth, but the FCC has them locked down.

What do countries like Taiwan do? Dense populations combined with high ratio of internet usage.

 

[SagaLore]

This won't be a problem once we master quantum entanglement.

 

[IronWing]

The problem isn't a lack of spectrum. The problem is that people can't stand thinking. When faced with time available for thinking, folks grab the phone instead.

 

[Specop 007]

God probably wont fix it, but Motorola will!

 

[polarmystery]

This won't be a problem once we master quantum entanglement.

I thought it was proven then while you can find the result of an entangled particle from any distance, real information can't travel that fast?

 

[ImpulsE69]

Isn't this how that movie Pulse started?

 

[WelshBloke]

God probably wont fix it, but Googarola will!

FTFY.

 

[dud]

Then you should know the FCC is part of the problem.

We have plenty of frequencies to increase bandwidth, but the FCC has them locked down.

What do countries like Taiwan do? Dense populations combined with high ratio of internet usage.

We are all part of the problem. Blaming the FCC is being shortsighted.

 

[Texashiker]

We are all part of the problem. Blaming the FCC is being shortsighted.

The FCC is "part" of the problem. Not all of the problem, not the majority of the problem, just "part" of the problem.

 

[ultimatebob]

Then you should know the FCC is part of the problem.

We have plenty of frequencies to increase bandwidth, but the FCC has them locked down.

What do countries like Taiwan do? Dense populations combined with high ratio of internet usage.

Yeah... there is a ton of underutilized bandwidth that NASA and the DoD is just sitting on. GOOD bandwidth that has a longer range and better building penetration than the crap bandwidth we're using now for WiFi. Perhaps NASA should start selling that spectrum off to At&t and Verizon to come up with more money for those underfunded Mars missions!

 

[Matthiasa]

That is part of the reason why they are working on newer modulation/compression/encoding/other techniques to decrease the amount of bandwidth for any given communication.
(Read real 4G not the stuff claiming to be such that doesn't even come close to meeting the standard.)

 

[Texashiker]

Perhaps NASA should start selling that spectrum off to At&t and Verizon to come up with more money for those underfunded Mars missions!

Forget selling, how about renting the spectrum to At&t and Verizon on a commission basis?

A penny for every text message should cover the bill for the Mars mission.

 

[cubby1223]

Last time I checked, watching videos of guys getting hit in the crotch on YouTube while on the go is a constitutionally protected right. It'll be a cold day in hell when you take that right away from me.

 

[bobdole369]

Meh there is plenty of "bandwidth" - usable radio goes from 30mhz -> 3000mhz. Below 30mhz is protected for its long distance communication capability. Large swaths are used by broadcasters, governments and private companies needing to communicate internally.

Current allocations for cell companies are decent, but they could easily double or treble that amount. Its just that someone is going to lose. ANd the politics involved with that are what is holding things back.

 

[Mr.IncrediblyBored]

Doesn't the FCC plan to sell a bunch of spectrum that was previously used for analog TV?

http://www.cio.com/article/700464/Congress_Passes_Bill_That_Opens_Up_TV_Spectrum

 

[SunnyD]

What they don't tell you is that AT&T and Verizon among other companies are sitting on tons of unused spectrum that they never have any intent of using either - they're simply keeping it from potential competitors.

There is no "spectrum crunch". It's all manufactured - same as the bandwidth apocalypse that supposedly ISPs are all hyping in order to get you to take higher bills, lower caps and bigger overages.

All manufactured bullshit in the name of profits.