FCC Testing White Spaces Databases

The Federal Communications Commission is testing the ability of white spaces databases to accurately correlate locations where unused TV spectrum can be used by unlicensed devices, while protecting TV broadcasts from interference.

White spaces are unused spectrum between TV stations and are considered prime real estate because signals in this band travel well, making the band ideally suited for mobile wireless devices, says Julie Knapp of the FCC.

Among the applications envisioned for such white spaces are "Super Wi-Fi", wireless broadband networks, support for video devices and services and machine-to-machine communications.

Generally speaking, there will be much more spectrum available in rural areas than in urban areas. That should spark interest by service and application providers who want to build their businesses in rural areas. There will be spectrum available in urban areas as well, but there also are many more bandwidth options in dense, urban areas.

FCC Announces Public Testing of First Television White Spaces Database