In Irving’s tale, Rip Van Winkle falls asleep for 20 years, awakening to a very different world. Something like that happened to Wi-Fi spectrum, too.
In 2006, the FCC opened 255 MHz in the 5 GHz band to Wi-Fi use, spurring the development of Wi-Fi 4. Then, no one paid attention to Wi-Fi spectrum for 14 years until the FCC opened up the 6 GHz band for unlicensed use in 2020. But a lot can happen while people are sleeping:
Read More “Rip Van Wi-Fi (with apologies to Washington Irving)”
Commercial interests with their eyes on federal spectrum bands need to support dynamic spectrum sharing and coexistence with existing federal users, according to a recent U.S. Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, & Transportation’s hearing on Spectrum and National Security. Witnesses said the U.S. needs to both preserve spectrum for federal systems, as well as allow commercial users to expand into federal bands using existing and new techniques for sharing federal spectrum, because doing so builds U.S. national security and economic strength.
WifiForward Executive Director Mary Brown championed the importance of unlicensed spectrum in driving innovation and maintaining America’s technological prowess. She stressed the necessity of shared spectrum bands to showcase American innovation on a global scale.
The end of March is every college basketball fan’s favorite time of year, with the kickoff of the NCAA Basketball Tournament or March Madness. If you aren’t familiar, the “madness” of it all comes from an action-packed month of over 100 games, with underdogs and upsets of highly favored-to-win teams. With all of the excitement, it’s critical for fans to have a robust communications network whether they are at the stadium or at home – and without Wi-Fi, you might miss the game-winning shot that everyone will be talking about.
The 6 GHz band has proven absolutely vital for the continued use and growth of Wi-Fi technology. In the seven years since the FCC released its first Notice of Inquiry on Wi-Fi in 6 GHz, commissioners and staff have poured their expertise into developing, defending, and publishing 6 GHz rules. WifiForward is greatly appreciative of all of the FCC’s work, which provides support for U.S. broadband policy, innovation in technology, and U.S. wireless leadership around the world.
The FCC’s groundbreaking, bipartisan and unanimous 2020 order carefully responded to an array of technical comments from incumbents, and not only survived a challenge to the D.C. Circuit, but was affirmed unanimously. In fact, the very first 6 GHz device entered the market late in 2020, based on then-new 6 GHz-specific certification rules devices developed by the FCC Lab. Read More “The Future of Wi-Fi in the 6 GHz Band”
Washington, D.C. – The U.S. Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation today held a hearing on spectrum and national security. WifiForward Executive Director Mary Brown testified before the hearing on the importance of unlicensed spectrum and the critical roles Wi-Fi and unlicensed spectrum play in U.S. global leadership.
“Wi-Fi technology is a bedrock of our nation’s connectivity here at home and is pivotal to our national security and global competitiveness,” Brown testified.
Read More “WifiForward to Senate Commerce: Wi-Fi Key to Fight Against China”
Wi-Fi is the “Swiss army knife” of wireless connectivity – there when you need it, and the possibilities for what you can do with it are endless. The recent cellular outage is just one example of myriad ways Wi-Fi has become integral to how we communicate. “We encourage the use of Wi-Fi calling until service is restored,” AT&T said in a statement. Good advice!
While Wi-Fi served as a critical backup to consumers impacted by the cellular service outage, most of the time, consumers are using both Wi-Fi and mobile services or switching seamlessly between the two. For example, when you arrive at your office in the morning, your phone will likely switch from cell service to your office Wi-Fi, and then when you get back home at the end of the day, it will connect to your Wi-Fi at home. In fact, Wi-Fi networks support 90% of data traffic because Wi-Fi sits at the edge of every broadband connection whether wired or wireless.
Washington, D.C. – WifiForward today released the following statement on the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA)’s National Spectrum Strategy Implementation Plan:
“The National Spectrum Strategy provides a critical opportunity to supercharge Wi-Fi to align with our national broadband goals and spur U.S.-led innovation. Wi-Fi technology already allows for coexistence in the 7.125-8.4 GHz band, without the need for relocation of federal incumbent providers — we’ve already seen it in the 6 GHz band, where low power and indoor Wi-Fi successfully coexist with mission-critical public safety, utility and broadcast systems. WifiForward urges NTIA to move as quickly as possible to allow coexistence in the 7/8 GHz band.”
Read More “WifiForward Statement on National Spectrum Strategy Implementation Plan”
Washington, D.C. – Today WifiForward released the following statement on the introduction of the Spectrum Pipeline Act of 2024:
“We appreciate the agreement that additional spectrum is needed for advanced Wi-Fi, but 125 MHz is inadequate to support the kind of future innovation and growth that will be required by consumers and competitive providers of wireless services. Wi-Fi is the workhorse of wireless connectivity, and we are concerned that this proposal disproportionately serves the interests of one business model within a much broader consumer wireless ecosystem. WifiForward looks forward to working with Senators Cruz and Thune and other stakeholders in Congress, NTIA and the FCC to ensure that consumers and innovators have access to the spectrum needed for faster broadband speeds, and new innovative technologies and use cases in the coming years.”
Read More “WifiForward Statement on the Spectrum Pipeline Act”
The United States has long been a leader in global innovation, particularly when it comes to spectrum. With the release of the National Telecommunications and Information Administration’s (NTIA) National Spectrum Strategy (NSS) implementation plan, the U.S. has yet another opportunity to lead the world in spectrum policy – but only if NTIA embraces the types of innovation that have propelled the U.S. to global leadership.
Read More “Wireless Leaders Unite: Urgent Call for Unlicensed Spectrum Access Under NTIA Plan”
Washington, D.C. – WifiForward and Spectrum for the Future today joined other next-generation wireless leaders to provide input on the highly anticipated National Spectrum Strategy (NSS) Implementation Plan set to be released in March. In a letter signed by 17 commercial spectrum users, public interest stakeholders, and defense companies, the advocates urged the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) to ensure access to essential spectrum resources and preserve national security through coexistence. Read More “Next-Generation Wireless Leaders Call for Action on Dynamic Sharing & Unlicensed Spectrum Under NTIA Plan”