Comcast: Unlicensed Spectrum Now Top Route to Web Access

Comcast exec Tom Nagle plans to tell the Senate Communications Subcommittee that the Federal Communications Commission needs to loosen restrictions on use of the 5 GHz band if Wi-Fi is going to meet the growing Internet access needs of increasingly mobile customers. That includes during emergencies like the Boston Marathon bombing, when Comcast opened up its Wi-Fi access points when cellular service got bogged down.

The company's strategy for providing Wi-Fi data services, Nagel indicates, is to continue to ramp up the use of unlicensed spectrum hot spots, including those of other providers. He says that the most popular method of accessing the Web is now via unlicensed technologies, which he also points out in his testimony can sometimes be critical sources of connectivity in times of crisis.