Google Lobbies for Cheaper Airwaves

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Having carved out a leading position in the software that runs cellphones, Google is now angling for a role in the networks that connect them.

That isn’t to say the Internet giant wants to set up thousands of cell towers to compete with carriers. Instead, it is lobbying US regulators to free up vast amounts of low-cost, mostly vacant spectrum that could serve as an alternative to the big carriers’ services. The plan that Google and others are backing would open up as much as 150 megahertz of spectrum around the 3.5 gigahertz band, pushing to make it usable by all comers without a license while still leaving some of it available for companies to use exclusively. The 3.5 gigahertz airwaves aren’t much use to wireless carriers, because they aren’t good at carrying signals for long distances. But they are useful for delivering heavy loads of data in cities, which could make them viable for a lot of typical wireless needs—the way Wi-Fi is now, but potentially broader and more available.


Google Lobbies for Cheaper Airwaves