[opendtv] FCC finally squashes M2Z's "US wide free Broadband" plan
- From: "Manfredi, Albert E" <albert.e.manfredi@xxxxxxxxxx>
- To: "opendtv@xxxxxxxxxxxxx" <opendtv@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Fri, 3 Sep 2010 13:23:08 -0500
More evidence of uncalled-for activism by the FCC.
Bert
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http://www.rethink-wireless.com/2010/09/03/fcc-finally-squashes-m2zs-us-wide-free-broadband-plan.htm
FCC finally squashes M2Z's "US wide free Broadband" plan
Concerns over undermining paid wireless broadband were at the heart of saying
no to M2Z
By PETER WHITE
Published: 3 September, 2010
The US FCC regulator has finally turned down a plan, massively unpopular with
both ISPs and Wireless Carriers, to offer US wide free wireless broadband, paid
for thought advertising and bandwidth sharing.
It has taken the FCC four years to ponder the proposal put by M2Z Networks to
use a spare piece spectrum at the bottom end of the 2GHz AWS-3 band. M2Z
offered to pay 5% of revenue to the Treasury on a permanent basis, rather than
pay an up front license fee.
Rival operators argued that the plan, which would only have delivered maximum
speeds of around 1 Mbps per user, would have tempted many to turn away from
paid broadband, and that if enough people did that, some of those services
would not be viable, which in turn would actually reduce the amount of
broadband available in the US, rather than increase it.
The FCC gave the "no" decision to M2Z in the last few days, leaving its
investors high and dry and having to think up a new plan, but did not go into
any detail as to why the move was not embraced. M2Z argued that the entire
nationwide system could've been up and running inside 10 years.
When the plan was first aired detractors went on about free broadband ending up
being used for the delivery of porn, although why it's okay for paid broadband
to do this and not free broadband, is another question. This resulted in the
FCC planning a porn filtering technology for the free network, a decision which
made the whole proposition increasingly cumbersome.
The FCC now says that universal deployment of broadband is still a mission, but
it will come about by reforming the Universal Service Fund under the National
Broadband Plan, once that is approved.
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- » [opendtv] FCC finally squashes M2Z's "US wide free Broadband" plan - Manfredi, Albert E