[情報] Google計畫在美國廣建免費WiFi

看板Broad_Band (寬頻網路)作者kilva (嗡嗡)時間13年前 (2013/04/09 00:46)推噓2(2推 0噓 4→)

留言6則, 4人參與討論串1/1

http://tinyurl.com/crbm9lh http://tinyurl.com/bvwakye super WiFi是一種使用於電視閒置頻段（white space）上的技術，可主動探測是否有閒置的頻譜，並加以利用。（基本上和WiFi沒有關係，正如WiFi和 Wimax的關係一般。） Google和Microsoft在肯亞及南非已開始相關實驗。加拿大和英國也有相似的測試計畫。（英國使用和美國不同的協議，稱為IEEE 802.22。） ---- 美國政府想在全國廣建super WiFi網路，讓人民不需要付費即可上網、打電話。 The federal government wants to create super WiFi networks across the nation, so powerful and broad in reach that consumers could use them to make calls or surf the Internet without paying a cellphone bill every month. 這項提議惹毛了產值有1,780億美元的行動傳訊產業，開始遊說議員反對提案。相對地，Google和Microsoft等內容服務業者希望此項服務能擴及每個美國人民，尤其是窮人。（好販售更多的服務。） The proposal from the Federal Communications Commission has rattled the $178 billion wireless industry, which has launched a fierce lobbying effort to persuade policymakers to reconsider the idea, analysts say. That has been countered by an equally intense campaign from Google, Microsoft and other tech giants who say a free-for-all WiFi service would spark an explosion of innovations and devices that would benefit most Americans, especially the poor. super WiFi比現有的WiFi網路更好，穿透力更佳，涵蓋範圍更好，因此可以較少的基地臺涵蓋美國的每個城市及鄉間。 The airwaves that FCC officials want to hand over to the public would be much more powerful than existing WiFi networks that have become common in households. They could penetrate thick concrete walls and travel over hills and around trees. If all goes as planned, free access to the Web would be available in just about every metropolitan area and in many rural areas. 因為super WiFi的涵蓋範圍更好，可以讓距離一哩外的兩輛車相互通信，也可以將患者的心電圖傳至另一座城市中的醫院。 The new WiFi networks would also have much farther reach, allowing for a driverless car to communicate with another vehicle a mile away or a patient’ s heart monitor to connect to a hospital on the other side of town. 這項技術即使FCC同意也要再過幾年才能上市。且因為無人管理，在大都市裡很容易變龜速。但至少是免費的，不想花錢的人可以退掉月租費，只使用免費的網路。（如上所述，穿透力好到可在家接取，若理論和實際不相差太多的話。） If approved by the FCC, the free networks would still take several years to set up. And, with no one actively managing them, con- nections could easily become jammed in major cities. But public WiFi could allow many consumers to make free calls from their mobile phones via the Internet. The frugal-minded could even use the service in their homes, allowing them to cut off expensive Internet bills. 這對一些人很有吸引力。 “For a casual user of the Web, perhaps this could replace carrier service,” said Jeffrey Silva, an analyst at the Medley Global Advisors research firm. “Because it is more plentiful and there is no price tag, it could have a real appeal to some people.” The major wireless carriers own much more spectrum than what is being proposed for public WiFi, making their networks more robust, experts say. 這項計畫是一大創舉。當美國政府在1985年開放不需申請執照的頻段後，隨後便是一連串的創新。 Designed by FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski, the plan would be a global first. When the U.S. government made a limited amount of unlicensed airwaves available in 1985, an unexpected explosion in innovation followed. Baby monitors, garage door openers and wireless stage microphones were created. Millions of homes now run their own wireless networks, connecting tablets, game consoles, kitchen appli- ances and security systems to the Internet. 開放不需申請執照的頻段可降低創新者進入的門檻。 “Freeing up unlicensed spectrum is a vibrantly free-market approach that offers low barriers to entry to innovators developing the technologies of the future and benefits consumers,” Genachow- ski said in a an e-mailed statement. Some companies and cities are already moving in this direction. Google is providing free WiFi to the public in the Chelsea neighborhood of Manhattan and parts of Silicon Valley. 城市也支持這項計畫，因為可以降低學校、公司及觀光客上網的費用。對付不起電話費及上網費的低收入戶的幫助更大。 Cities support the idea because the networks would lower costs for schools and businesses or help vacationers easily find tourist spots. Consumer advocates note the benefits to the poor, who often cannot afford high cellphone and Internet bills. 這項計畫需要地方電視臺和廣播業者把頻段賣回給政府，但不確認這些公司會願意這麼做。（相對地，臺灣在super WiFi使用的頻段600~700MHz上基本上是閒置的。） The proposal would require local television stations and other broadcasters to sell a chunk of airwaves to the government that would be used for the public WiFi networks. It is not clear whether these companies would be willing to do so. The FCC’s plan is part of a broader strategy to repurpose entire swaths of the nation’s airwaves to accomplish a number of goals, including bolstering cellular networks and creating a dedicated channel for emergency responders. 一些政治家認為免費是不能賺錢的，尤其是會少掉頻譜競標的一大筆錢。 Some Republican lawmakers have criticized Genachowski for his idea of creating free WiFi networks, noting that an auction of the airwaves would raise billions for the U.S. Treasury. 系統業者及設備商也對政府少掉賺錢的機會而嘆息。（對自己少掉的商機更加感到心如刀割。） That sentiment echoes arguments made by companies such as AT&T, T-Mobile, Verizon Wireless, Intel and Qualcomm, in a letter to the FCC staff late last month, that the government should focus its attention on selling the airwaves to businesses. 部分公司亦警告super WiFi會干擾現存的行動網路和無線電視訊號。 Some of these companies also cautioned that a free WiFi service could interfere with existing cellular networks and television broadcasts. Intel, whose chips are used in many of the devices that operate on cellular networks, fears that the new WiFi service would crowd the airwaves. The company said it would rather the FCC use the airwaves from television stations to bolster high-speed cellular networks, known as 4G. Intel的執行長Peter Pitsch認為，沒有執照的頻段不會吸引投資，無法提供用戶優化的服務品質。 “We think that that spectrum would be most useful to the larger society and to broadband deployment if it were licensed,” said Peter Pitsch, the executive director of communications for Intel. “As unlicensed, there would be a disincentive to invest in expensive networking equipment and provide users with optimal quality of service.” Cisco等設備商要求FCC對可能的干擾做更多的測試。 Cisco and other telecommunications equipment firms told the FCC that it needs to test the airwaves more for potential interference. -- ※ 發信站: 批踢踢實業坊(ptt.cc) ◆ From: 114.44.148.134 ※ 編輯: kilva 來自: 114.44.148.134 (04/09 01:03)