http://www.engadget.com/2008/08/20/wireless-audio-manufacturers-unhappy-with-googles-whitespace-in/ Engadget Comments for Wireless audio manufacturers unhappy with Google's whitespace internet plans http://www.engadget.com/media/feedlogo.gif http://www.engadget.com en-us Copyright 2009 Weblogs, Inc. The contents of this feed are available for non-commercial use only. Blogsmith http://www.blogsmith.com/http://www.engadget.com/2008/08/20/wireless-audio-manufacturers-unhappy-with-googles-whitespace-in/http://www.engadget.com/2008/08/20/wireless-audio-manufacturers-unhappy-with-googles-whitespace-in/Aug 20th 2008 9:50AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2008/08/20/wireless-audio-manufacturers-unhappy-with-googles-whitespace-in/http://www.engadget.com/2008/08/20/wireless-audio-manufacturers-unhappy-with-googles-whitespace-in/
They're all complaining "blah blah we were here first! this has been our frequency for years!"

Yeah ask the Native Americans how that type of defense usually works out. Usually ends with a ripped treaty and a trail of tears....

All... Most kidding aside... get the hell out of the way of progress please. Comcast is breakin' my balls.]]>Aug 20th 2008 10:11AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2008/08/20/wireless-audio-manufacturers-unhappy-with-googles-whitespace-in/http://www.engadget.com/2008/08/20/wireless-audio-manufacturers-unhappy-with-googles-whitespace-in/
National and international bodies assign differing frequencies for specific uses, and in some cases license the rights to these. This frequency allocation process creates a bandplan which in some cases for technical reasons assigns white space between used bands to avoid interference. In this case, while the frequencies are unused they have been specifically assigned for a purpose.

As well as this technical assignment, there is also unused spectrum which has either never been used, or is becoming free as a result of technical changes. In particular, the planned switchover to digital television may free up large areas between 54MHz and 698MHz. Various proposals including from the White Spaces Coalition propose to use this to provide broadband Internet access. However, these efforts may impact wireless microphones and other technologies that have historically relied on these frequencies.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/White_space_(telecommunications)]]>Aug 20th 2008 10:09AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2008/08/20/wireless-audio-manufacturers-unhappy-with-googles-whitespace-in/http://www.engadget.com/2008/08/20/wireless-audio-manufacturers-unhappy-with-googles-whitespace-in/
*drinks his caffeine* Its too early in the morning for this shit....]]>Aug 20th 2008 10:38AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2008/08/20/wireless-audio-manufacturers-unhappy-with-googles-whitespace-in/http://www.engadget.com/2008/08/20/wireless-audio-manufacturers-unhappy-with-googles-whitespace-in/Aug 20th 2008 10:47AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2008/08/20/wireless-audio-manufacturers-unhappy-with-googles-whitespace-in/http://www.engadget.com/2008/08/20/wireless-audio-manufacturers-unhappy-with-googles-whitespace-in/Aug 20th 2008 10:49AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2008/08/20/wireless-audio-manufacturers-unhappy-with-googles-whitespace-in/http://www.engadget.com/2008/08/20/wireless-audio-manufacturers-unhappy-with-googles-whitespace-in/Aug 20th 2008 10:46AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2008/08/20/wireless-audio-manufacturers-unhappy-with-googles-whitespace-in/http://www.engadget.com/2008/08/20/wireless-audio-manufacturers-unhappy-with-googles-whitespace-in/
In high TV/Film production and broadcast areas such as NY and LA it's already a struggle to find a nice clean frequency block to use. The uses of these wireless microphones are not limited to just music and stage performances. These are used during TV broadcasts, documentaries, some of your favorite TV shows, blockbuster feature films and more.

Help us sound people out!]]>Aug 20th 2008 11:10AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2008/08/20/wireless-audio-manufacturers-unhappy-with-googles-whitespace-in/http://www.engadget.com/2008/08/20/wireless-audio-manufacturers-unhappy-with-googles-whitespace-in/
Happily - this....is a wire. Have fun, I'll be on the internet!]]>Aug 20th 2008 11:49AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2008/08/20/wireless-audio-manufacturers-unhappy-with-googles-whitespace-in/http://www.engadget.com/2008/08/20/wireless-audio-manufacturers-unhappy-with-googles-whitespace-in/Aug 21st 2008 5:26AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2008/08/20/wireless-audio-manufacturers-unhappy-with-googles-whitespace-in/http://www.engadget.com/2008/08/20/wireless-audio-manufacturers-unhappy-with-googles-whitespace-in/Aug 20th 2008 11:19AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2008/08/20/wireless-audio-manufacturers-unhappy-with-googles-whitespace-in/http://www.engadget.com/2008/08/20/wireless-audio-manufacturers-unhappy-with-googles-whitespace-in/
By definition we're talking about open space, the radio equivalent of the commons. Obviously you want to avoid a tragedy of the commons situation where everyone uses what is free to the detriment of the open space, but that shouldn't mean that the current free-loaders should get a pass on whatever sharing of the bandwidth has to be arranged.

Maybe the price that has to be paid on that end is that the audio equipment has to be redesigned so that it frequency hops and adjusts for the other signals out there competing for the space and maybe that makes the equipment a bit more expensive. The wireless systems to connect to the internet will have the same constraints and same costs built into them as well.

Seems to me to be fair if everyone, regardless of their use has to pay the price (in terms of more sophisticated equipment) in order to share the open space in a way that doesn't make the open space useless to everyone.

]]>Aug 20th 2008 12:33PMhttp://www.engadget.com/2008/08/20/wireless-audio-manufacturers-unhappy-with-googles-whitespace-in/http://www.engadget.com/2008/08/20/wireless-audio-manufacturers-unhappy-with-googles-whitespace-in/Aug 20th 2008 12:54PMhttp://www.engadget.com/2008/08/20/wireless-audio-manufacturers-unhappy-with-googles-whitespace-in/http://www.engadget.com/2008/08/20/wireless-audio-manufacturers-unhappy-with-googles-whitespace-in/Aug 20th 2008 1:21PMhttp://www.engadget.com/2008/08/20/wireless-audio-manufacturers-unhappy-with-googles-whitespace-in/http://www.engadget.com/2008/08/20/wireless-audio-manufacturers-unhappy-with-googles-whitespace-in/
I'd say you have a very unusual definition of "competition" here. Technologies that exist now, on constrained spectrum segments like WiFi, already prove that radio space can be shared among arbitrary numbers of users. There is no need to grant any one WiFi user spectrum or space use monopolies -- why should that be necessary in ANY spectrum segment? Digital radio space sharing is now proven technology -- the entire spectrum use space market should adapt NOW.

Monopolies are useless -- spectrum monopolies only exist in wireless business now because the backwards FCC (government thugs) enforces them. There is nothing natural or competitive about the way wireless spectrum is currently allocated. Broadcast is dead -- WiFi, and similar spectrum/space sharing technologies, should be given ALL the spectrum.
]]>Aug 21st 2008 5:40AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2008/08/20/wireless-audio-manufacturers-unhappy-with-googles-whitespace-in/http://www.engadget.com/2008/08/20/wireless-audio-manufacturers-unhappy-with-googles-whitespace-in/Aug 20th 2008 1:38PMhttp://www.engadget.com/2008/08/20/wireless-audio-manufacturers-unhappy-with-googles-whitespace-in/http://www.engadget.com/2008/08/20/wireless-audio-manufacturers-unhappy-with-googles-whitespace-in/
If the FCC hasn't granted any spectrum monopoly in a given segment on a given parcel, that open segment should be up for grabs by anyone, with any sufficient wireless communications device, currently wandering through that parcel.

Another way of looking at it is this hypothetical government body: the Federal Breathing Air Commission. FBAC grants rights to breathe certain air. The FBAC might grant some megacorps right to the air 100's of feet over certain cities. Right now, the megacorps are trying to say that nobody can breathe their air, as if they own all the air, even outside their FBAC granted vertical air boundary. Google is trying to say that anybody should be able to breathe the air outside of that defined boundary, any time they walk through it. They are trying to give us back the right to the air we breathe -- taking it back from greedy megacorps who want to keep all the air for themselves, even when they aren't using it.
]]>Aug 21st 2008 5:55AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2008/08/20/wireless-audio-manufacturers-unhappy-with-googles-whitespace-in/http://www.engadget.com/2008/08/20/wireless-audio-manufacturers-unhappy-with-googles-whitespace-in/
Other than that I have a few comments. First, to the napster commentor.....musicians at every level need to be able to protect their copyrighted intellectual property. They have a right to the earnings that come with each "play" from their catalog as much as anyone who writes a book has a right to royalties. If anyone works hard to create something, they should be the primary beneficiary of that work....not some 3rd party who is profiting from unauthorized use of the work.

At the same time, the musicians who use this equipment in concert venues can likely afford to upgrade their equipment in whatever way progress demands.

The musicians who use this equipment and are still in the "struggling musician" category will likely find a "work around". Maybe they'll have to go back to wired equipment...or they'll create something new. I worked as a musician for years and always had to find "work arounds" for any number of challenges.

That's my 2 cents.... ]]>Aug 20th 2008 1:47PMhttp://www.engadget.com/2008/08/20/wireless-audio-manufacturers-unhappy-with-googles-whitespace-in/http://www.engadget.com/2008/08/20/wireless-audio-manufacturers-unhappy-with-googles-whitespace-in/
Please don't make this A2's life harder!]]>Aug 20th 2008 5:49PMhttp://www.engadget.com/2008/08/20/wireless-audio-manufacturers-unhappy-with-googles-whitespace-in/http://www.engadget.com/2008/08/20/wireless-audio-manufacturers-unhappy-with-googles-whitespace-in/
No, I really think these are just audio mfr corporate shills, aren't they? Come on, either you're just another suit or you simply forgot that this was really a good thing for you. Which is it?]]>Aug 20th 2008 11:56PM