A Spectrum Of Possibilities

THE UNITED STATES, once the leader in Internet usage, is falling behind other nations in the switch to ultra-fast broadband connections. The Federal Communications Commission is about to auction off a significant part of the broadcast spectrum that could be the venue for affordable and fast wireless Internet connections. The FCC needs to adjust the auction rules so that this space becomes a competitive Internet marketplace.

The broadcast space is now occupied by television channels 52 to 69, but the broadcasters will vacate it in 2009 as they convert to digital transmissions. Signals in this space pass easily through walls and other obstacles, making it ideal for wireless use.

If the FCC follows previous practice, it would auction off sections of the space to the highest bidders, which could use it to expand their own phone and Internet services. These communications giants usually place limits on which devices can be connected to their systems, and consumers often chafe at these restrictions. To help them out, FCC Chairman Kevin Martin wants to make sure a third of the space is open to a wide variety of phones and other gadgets.

Google, the giant search engine company, last week proposed to go far beyond Martin’s plan. It offered to pay $4.6 billion for one-third of the space if the FCC opened all of the spectrum to competition. Successful bidders would have to agree to resell some of their space to broadband providers, much as the telephone companies have to allow dial-up providers to use their lines.

Last week’s proposal is a sound business move by Google. If more Americans sign up for broadband, more will see the ads that accompany Google search engine results.

The Google plan would also be good for consumers. It would encourage the development of a national wireless system, providing competition to keep the cost down in communities now served by wired broadband and improving access in underserved areas, such as the Berkshires, that are too sparsely populated to justify private investment now.

The FCC will be meeting Tuesday to discuss the rules for the spectrum auction, which will take place early next year. In advance of their deliberations, Martin testified this week before the House Committee on Energy and Commerce, one of whose leading members is Representative Edward Markey of Massachusetts. Markey has been a leader in promoting competition in telecommunications. Without endorsing the Google bid, he’d be wise to urge the FCC to adopt its auction conditions.

The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development reported earlier this year that the United States is lagging behind 14 other countries in broadband penetration. Opening up wider access to a significant part of spectrum could jump-start wireless service in the United States –or broadband, telephone, and who knows what else.

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