Slashdot Log In
Verizon Reveals Plans For "C Block" Airwaves
Posted by
Zonk
on Sat Apr 05, 2008 01:28 PM
from the glad-they-all-have-our-best-interests-at-heart dept.
from the glad-they-all-have-our-best-interests-at-heart dept.
eldavojohn writes "Now that Verizon has beaten Google in the 'block C' spectrum auction, what are they going to do with it? Well, as of today they've revealed their plans for world domination: they plan to speed up wireless internet connections. It may come as no surprise that they'll also be making this available for other manufacturer's devices. AT&T plans to do the same with their auction winnings, 'AT&T was second to Verizon, winning $6 billion in spectrum licenses, which it also plans to use for high-speed Internet service. But its executives said they didn't bid for the portion subject to the open-access rules. The parts it did land cost AT&T nearly three times as much per unit of spectrum than the portion Verizon bought.'"
Related Stories
[+]
Hardware: Verizon Wireless To Open Network 286 comments
A number of readers are letting us know about Verizon's plans, announced today, to open their nationwide wireless network to devices that they don't sell. A NYTimes blog posting puts VZW's announcement in industry context. From the press release: "In early 2008, the company will publish the technical standards the development community will need to design products to interface with the Verizon Wireless network. Any device that meets the minimum technical standard will be activated on the network. Devices will be tested and approved in a $20 million state-of-the-art testing lab which received an additional investment this year to gear up for the anticipated new demand. Any application the customer chooses will be allowed on these devices."
[+]
Hardware: Google a "Happy Loser" In Spectrum Auction 162 comments
Large cell service providers won almost all of the licenses in the recently concluded FCC spectrum auction. Google didn't get any and won't be entering the wireless business. Verizon Wireless was the big winner, laying out $9.4 billion for enough regional licenses in the "C" block to stitch together nationwide coverage, except for Alaska. On this spectrum Verizon will have to allow subscribers to use any compatible wireless device and run any software application they want. AT&T paid $6.6 billion, Qualcomm picked up a few licenses, and Paul Allen's Vulcan Spectrum LLC won a pair of licenses in the "A" block. One analyst called Google a "happy loser" because it got the openness it had pushed for. The AP's coverage does some more of the numbers.
[+]
Technology: Google Ends Silence On C Block Auction 162 comments
Phurge found a post on the Google Policy Blog in which they lift the cone of silence that had been imposed by regulation over the recently concluded FCC spectrum auction. As some had speculated, Google was in it mainly to force some openness into the wireless industry. "Based on the way that the bidding played out, our participation in the auction helped ensure that the C Block met the reserve price. In fact, in ten of the bidding rounds we actually raised our own bid — even though no one was bidding against us — to ensure aggressive bidding on the C Block. In turn, that helped increase the revenues raised for the US Treasury, while making sure that the openness conditions would be applied to the ultimate licensee."
This discussion has been archived.
No new comments can be posted.
The Fine Print: The following comments are owned by whoever posted them. We are not responsible for them in any way.
Full
Abbreviated
Hidden
Loading... please wait.
Radio spectrum to be used... (Score:5, Funny)
...for wireless communication. News at 11!
Re:Radio spectrum to be used... (Score:4, Funny)
Parent
Re: (Score:2)
AT&T got one chunk, and verizon got another chunk, (there was 2MHZ of spectrum difference not sure who got the smaller slice) but this will be used for digital data transfer in 4G phones... each full channel of spectrum can broadcast more than a full channel of 1080i Possibly 1080P but wiki didn't say how many less HZ d
Re: (Score:2)
Re: (Score:2)
Re: (Score:2)
Re: (Score:2)
Re: (Score:2, Informative)
Re: (Score:3, Interesting)
so they can't get the full 54 mbits because of interference.
so if they were using the same technology and had less interference they would get roughly 150 mbit/second a far cry from the 500 mbit suggested by vague non specific wiki's on broadcast technologies.
I'd think the 700-800 mhz bandwidth is significantl
Maybe it's time (Score:2)
Re:Maybe it's time (Score:4, Informative)
http://www.informationweek.com/news/mobility/3G/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=207001878 [informationweek.com]
and they plan to roll out early 4G phones and towers before 4G standards are done and who knows what kind of problems that will expose in the new standards and technology.
Parent
Re:Maybe it's time (Score:5, Insightful)
Parent
Why create the semblance of a fight? (Score:5, Insightful)
Why create the semblance of a fight where one did not exist? All google really wanted was open air-waves.
Verizon didn't beat google, Verizon played right into google's hand.
Re: (Score:2)
I don't use Verizon, but know people who do. Their FIOS service is a large jump forward over cable, or would be if they did it right. The wireless AP they provide is less than optimal, and if you don't use their version of a 'standard' Windows installation it seems they are completely clueless as to how to help you or even support your setup.
Hopefully, with their auction win, they will begin t
Re:Why create the semblance of a fight? (Score:4, Insightful)
Parent
Great... now just upgrade your business model! (Score:5, Insightful)
If Verizon, or any cell phone company for that matter want to ever succeed in making these services popular, they have to change their lame fees. 1 cent per kilobyte, or fees like that, were good back in the days of GPRS when all you had was a text based Internet on phones, but this simply won't do now that you can easily transfer over a dollar in kilobytes in 1 website!
I don't even bother using the Internet or text messages on my older phone, waaaay to expensive!
So if these companies want to ever hope to attract consumers to use the Internet services that would come out of this, they have to change their lame business model, or they will lose money.
Re: (Score:2)
That's perfectly fine that you don't use the internet on your phone, but al ot of people--including millions of iphone users--do use it!
What's the problem?
Re: (Score:2)
Verizon has the same thing ex
Re: (Score:2)
That's not entirely true, as evidenced by Verizon's awesome "$0.49/MB past your allowance" plan [evdoinfo.com]. <sarcasm>Wow, thanks Verizon!!</sarc
Re: (Score:2)
Better deals than the one's advertised exist. One simply need look.
Walled Internet, here we come ... (Score:3, Insightful)
Seriously, I don't believe a word of what's coming out of Verizon's collective mouth. I really hope I'm wrong, but "open access" and "Telco" really don't belong in the same sentence.
Verizon picked up some A&B to go with the C bl (Score:3, Interesting)
NYC, Chicago, and LA, they ended up with A, B, and C block purchases. In some other large markets (Washington DC, Dallas, SanFran) they picked up either an A or a B in addition to their nationwide C block.
So they're certainly thinking about capacity and customer density for their future networks.
I kind of wonder, though, to what extent they've squeezed the amount of bandwidth that AT&T is going to have in those major cities. I don't have the details on their previous acquisitions to know for sure, but Verizon certainly took some potential capacity away from them.
I can relate... (Score:5, Funny)
Re: (Score:3, Informative)
Re: (Score:2)