FCC should support, not stifle, innovation

[Commentary] The information superhighway is getting more crowded by the minute and megabyte. As the use of smartphones and tablets grows exponentially, it’s going to take technological innovation to prevent gridlock. Fortunately, a group of wireless providers has developed one piece of the solution. Known as LTE Unlicensed (LTE-U), this technology will be rolled out by T-Mobile, Verizon and other carriers.

Using the unlicensed part of the spectrum to supplement their existing networks, LTE-U is expected to greatly improve wireless broadband service, especially in crowded urban areas where heavy demand from data-hungry devices often parallels the congestion found on city streets, highways, bridges and tunnels. The potential upside of LTE-U is enormous. It could help give wireless customers more bang for their buck, alleviate the spectrum crunch, and inject sorely-needed competition into the broadband marketplace. On the other hand, the threat posed to Wi-Fi is minimal because LTE-U is only seeking to do now what Wi-Fi and Bluetooth once did: use the nation’s unlicensed spectrum in an inventive way that helps meets consumers’ growing and changing needs. Rather than stifle innovation in the womb through unprecedented intervention in the unlicensed spectrum, the FCC should continue its longstanding policy and practice of letting competition and creativity work their magic.

[The authors are former chairmen of the House Commerce Committee and are now professional lobbyists]