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White Spaces Test "Rigged," Says Google Co-Founder Page

Posted by timothy on from the say-it-ain't-so dept.

Davide Marney writes "As reported by the Washington Post, Google co-founder Larry Page claims that an FCC field test of white space wireless devices was 'rigged' to make the test device fail to detect wireless microphone broadcasts. A Google spokesman explained later that testers had hidden the wireless microphones within the same frequency as local television stations, preventing the test device from detecting them."

2 of 323 comments (clear)

  1. Re:Can someone explain this article a bit better.. by LostCluster · · Score: 5, Informative

    Here's the summary:

    There's unused radio spectrum (called "white space") between the TV channels that are designed to give the stations protection. Google (and others) claim that small radio devices can transmit on those frequencies and not harm the TV signals, TV stations of course fearful of anything that might cost them viewers disputed that.

    So the FCC set up a field test of a Google device and other devices to see if everything work right. The result of that test was a "fail" for Google's side... but the news is that Google is claiming the wireless microphone channel being tested equated to a local TV broadcasting channel, and therefore was unfair.

  2. Summary for non-engineers by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Informative

    Summary for non-engineers:

    Google (among others) want to use the newly freed analog TV frequencies to provide long range wireless internet.

    Short range RF microphones i.e. wireless stage mics that aren't using IR currently operate in this area as well. current analog TV doesn't interfere, I'll spare details.

    Some claim the wireless internet system that has been devised will interfere with these microphones. Google group says they won't because the devices are capable of detecting a microphone transmitting and work around the issue (change freq).

    FCC setup a test, device failed to avoid microphones frequencies thus, knocking it out of commission and failing the test.

    Google chap claims the testers had the mic transmitting on a frequency used by the local TV channel and this transmitter was so strong that the system could not detect the microphone because it was effectively masked.

    Google chap says this was done on purpose.

    The end.