Artemis Makes Tiny Internet Cells to Dodge Interference

Startup Artemis Networks showed off a new technology called pCell (which stands for “personal cell”) that it claims deliver fast, unshared bandwidth to each smartphone, tablet or laptop, even in packed places like stadiums.

The pCells are generated by small transmitters that look sort of like a larger version of a home wireless router and can be placed all over a building or a city. If adopted, they could even one day replace cell towers, according to Artemis founder Steve Perlman, who formerly worked at Apple and Microsoft and helped invent products like QuickTime and WebTV.

The pCell system works with standard LTE phones, so no new handset technology is required. And they can coexist with the current cell phone transmission system. But there’s a catch: Deploying them will require the active cooperation of the major wireless carriers, who may be suspicious of relying on a radical new technology from a small startup.