Google Vision Opposes AT&T as U.S. Looks to Sell Spectrum

US regulators preparing to auction airwaves craved by wireless providers to meet demand from data-hungry smartphones are facing a divisive choice: how much to devote instead to mobile service that can be free. Federal Communications Commission Chairman Julius Genachowski, who has pushed for broader access to high-speed Internet, backs a vision shared by Google and Microsoft of setting aside spectrum for mobile services not yet invented. He’s accused opponents of waging a “nascent war on Wi-Fi,” the aerial Internet connection found globally in coffee shops and offices. Airwaves withheld from the auction and allocated to new uses would mean fewer frequencies for established carriers. “The largest holders of spectrum have no interest in seeing new competition,” said Cathy Sloan, vice president of government relations with the Computer & Communications Industry Association.