We might soon see a whole new range of wireless devices hit the market, thanks to the UK's telecom manager Ofcom publishing a framework that'll see the "white space" parts of the radio spectrum opened up for commercial use.
Ofcom's suggested use for these gaps between existing spectrum include broadband access for rural locations or what it terms "machine-to-machine networks. The lower frequency transmissions (the gaps in the TV range are between 470MHz and 790MHz) would cover larger distances than the high frequencies used by wi-fi and Bluetooth today, so could come in handy for making small-scale wireless networks spanning towns and villages or hooking not-spots into established data links.
Ofcom wants to avoid the stresses of auctioning off these chunks of spectrum, and instead hopes to encourage the government to introduce new legislation that would allow would-be users of the white space bands to register with a database and then operate within safe power limits, ensuring there won't be any interference issues. [Ofcom via Telegraph]
Image credit: Radio waves from Shutterstock