August 2009 -- What follows is a somewhat impressionistic, highly biased[1] account of how
unlicensed radio services moved from being a by-product of the ISM bands to a
deliberate spectrum allocation, with clearly defined goals and objectives that could
be achieved only by not subjecting the spectrum to licensing or auctions. Like sin itself, the
deliberate un-licensing of spectrum began with an Apple.
U-PCS:
In early 1991, Apple Computer was developing the Newton as the first PDA (Apple invented
the term) and was pioneering in the laptop segment of the computer market. Apple believed
that wireless connectivity was essential to the success of both products[2].
Accordingly, Apple petitioned the FCC to allocate 40MHz of spectrum – 1,850-1,890MHz –
out of the 1,850-1,990MHz band being earmarked for new technologies, particularly PCS.
Apple called its proposed new radio service Data-PCS and proposed that it would be
devoted exclusively to local area, high speed data communications to support collaborative
computing and spontaneous networking among laptops and PDAs.
Citation
"Grazing on the Commons: The Emergence of Part 15" by Henry Goldberg, Information Economy Project: Unlicensed Wireless Policy Conference, 5 INFO 72-75 (August 2009), Quick Links: Unlicensed Wireless Policy Conference
Related Scholarship
"Unlicensed Wireless Policy Conference: Guest Editorial" by Charles L. Jackson, 5 INFO (August 2009), Quick Links: Unlicensed Wireless Policy Conference
"Unlicensed to Kill: A Brief History of the FCC Part 15 Rules" by Kenneth R. Carter, 5 INFO 8-18 (August 2009), Quick Links: Unlicensed Wireless Policy Conference
"Mark Fowler's Introduction of Mike Marcus" by Mark S. Fowler (April 2008), Quick Links: Unlicensed Wireless Policy Conference
"Wi-Fi and Bluetooth: The Path from Carter and Reagan-era Faith
in Deregulation to Widespread Products Impacting Our World" by Michael J. Marcus, 5 INFO 19-35 (August 2009), Quick Links: Unlicensed Wireless Policy Conference
"Unlicensed: The Case of Wi-Fi" by Ing Victor Hayes & Ir. Wolter Lemstra, 5 INFO 57-71 (August 2009), Quick Links: Unlicensed Wireless Policy Conference
"Grazing on the Commons: The Emergence of Part 15" by Henry Goldberg, 5 INFO 72-75 (August 2009), Quick Links: Unlicensed Wireless Policy Conference
"Has "Unlicensed" in Part 15 Worked? A Case Study" by Tim Pozar, 5 INFO 86-91 (August 2009), Quick Links: Unlicensed Wireless Policy Conference
