To those of you who may not know the entire story (this has only recently come on the FCC's radar screen and is WAY off the mainstream media's): The so-called "white-space" parts of the spectrun Google and others wish to operate their magic little devices in, are currently used by a rather large population of wireless microphones. No, wireless microphones are not just for karaoke, but have been in use for decades in a variety of professional, commercial and institutional applications. This includes use in everything from sporting events, broadway shows, conference centers, conventions, political rallies, churches, colleges, theme parks, live concerts, film production and not least of all-broadcast television. These include the clip-on style mics used by your friendly news anchor and the hand-held vocal mics used by Cher, Britney, Madonna and the whole performance crowd, to say nothing of the pastor at your local church, or students doing a college stage production. The point is, the reason the FCC is dragging Google & Co, through the mud, is that they have yet to prove that their wireless devices will not have a devastaing impact on the use of wireless microphones, which occupy the same spectrum. Had the FCC gone ahead and granted their blessing, a critical audio production tool used in the venues mentioned above, would virtually cease to function. That would not only be vastly dissappointing to the masses of performers and audiences alike, but would have a crippling effect on our economy. Since historically, these devices have functioned as unlicensed devices under Part 15 & Part 74 rules, the FCC didn't really ever pay much attention to them. The millions of users of these wireless mics do not have the money to buy chunks of spectrum as do large corporations like ATT, Microsoft, etc... , so they are therefore at the "mercy" of the open air waves. Also, bear in mind, these are not $50-100 throw away consumer devices like cell-phones. These are complex, multi-unit, multi-channel systems (often as as many as 4- or 50 operating in one venue, each on a seperate frequency) and representing thousands, if not tens of thousands of dollars in investment. If not for a concerned group of wireless users and manufacturers makaing some noise, so the FCC could hear, this would have been a done deal. The technology Google, etc... was to develop, is supposed to operate "intelligently", and in a way that does not interfere with other devices, including wireless mics. So far, their attempts have failed disasterously and the FCC has sent them back to the drawing board several times. So...If all of you want to suddenly turn on the news or a sports event, watch your favorite TV show (yes, even the Sopranos, American Idol and Desperate Houswife's use wireless microphones) only to discover that either a) the sound suddenly sucks or b) the show is no longer broadcasting. Or... cannot get tickets to a broadway show or concert because they simply "cannot go on", you may want to think twice about blindly supporting Google or having the FCC rush through this without serious consideration.
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To those of you who may not know the entire story (this has only recently come on the FCC's radar screen and is WAY off the mainstream media's): The so-called "white-space" parts of the spectrun Google and others wish to operate their magic little devices in, are currently used by a rather large population of wireless microphones. No, wireless microphones are not just for karaoke, but have been in use for decades in a variety of professional, commercial and institutional applications. This includes use in everything from sporting events, broadway shows, conference centers, conventions, political rallies, churches, colleges, theme parks, live concerts, film production and not least of all-broadcast television. These include the clip-on style mics used by your friendly news anchor and the hand-held vocal mics used by Cher, Britney, Madonna and the whole performance crowd, to say nothing of the pastor at your local church, or students doing a college stage production. The point is, the reason the FCC is dragging Google & Co, through the mud, is that they have yet to prove that their wireless devices will not have a devastaing impact on the use of wireless microphones, which occupy the same spectrum. Had the FCC gone ahead and granted their blessing, a critical audio production tool used in the venues mentioned above, would virtually cease to function. That would not only be vastly dissappointing to the masses of performers and audiences alike, but would have a crippling effect on our economy. Since historically, these devices have functioned as unlicensed devices under Part 15 & Part 74 rules, the FCC didn't really ever pay much attention to them. The millions of users of these wireless mics do not have the money to buy chunks of spectrum as do large corporations like ATT, Microsoft, etc... , so they are therefore at the "mercy" of the open air waves. Also, bear in mind, these are not $50-100 throw away consumer devices like cell-phones. These are complex, multi-unit, multi-channel systems (often as as many as 4- or 50 operating in one venue, each on a seperate frequency) and representing thousands, if not tens of thousands of dollars in investment. If not for a concerned group of wireless users and manufacturers makaing some noise, so the FCC could hear, this would have been a done deal. The technology Google, etc... was to develop, is supposed to operate "intelligently", and in a way that does not interfere with other devices, including wireless mics. So far, their attempts have failed disasterously and the FCC has sent them back to the drawing board several times. So...If all of you want to suddenly turn on the news or a sports event, watch your favorite TV show (yes, even the Sopranos, American Idol and Desperate Houswife's use wireless microphones) only to discover that either a) the sound suddenly sucks or b) the show is no longer broadcasting. Or... cannot get tickets to a broadway show or concert because they simply "cannot go on", you may want to think twice about blindly supporting Google or having the FCC rush through this without serious consideration.