Wi-Fi Forward petitions FCC, targets millennials

Could the battle between Wi-Fi and LTE-U turn some members of the mobile-first generation against the cellular industry? Google, cable providers and Wi-Fi equipment makers are targeting millennials in a video called “Wi-Fi Killer on the Loose” which claims wireless carriers are threatening free Wi-Fi. The video urges viewers to sign a digital petition asking the Federal Communications Commission to “prioritize consumers” by protecting Wi-Fi.
Save Our Wi-Fi is the name of the group that posted the video. It is backed by Wi-Fi Forward, a coalition that includes Google, Comcast, Microsoft, Time Warner Cable, Boingo, Ruckus Wireless, Best Buy, Broadcom and Hewlett-Packard Enterprise, among others. The group wants the FCC to protect the unlicensed spectrum used by Wi-Fi by waiting to allow LTE to operate in this spectrum until more testing has been done.
Qualcomm, which is developing modems to enable smartphones to use LTE in unlicensed spectrum, said it will never support a technology that threatens Wi-Fi since it has a significant Wi-Fi chip business of its own. But companies that have built their business around Wi-Fi are very nervous, and now they’re enlisting consumer support as they take their fight to the FCC.
“Wi-Fi – can you live without it?” the video asks. “If Wi-Fi helps you get through the day, take 30 seconds now to defend it. Visit saveourwif.org and sign the petition.”
The video reminds millennials that for many of them Wi-Fi is the primary connection to the internet. The narrator describes Wi-Fi as “the high-speed wireless internet we use without having to worry about costly cellular data plans or data overcharges. But now, cellphone companies want to deploy LTE-U into the same airwaves where our Wi-Fi already operates. LTE-U could severely degrade your Wi-Fi performance and coverage. Forget Netflix bingeing anyplace other than directly next to your router.”
The FCC is paying attention. This spring FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler told Congress there is more work to do before LTE-U can be considered for commercial deployment. He and the other commissioners face the difficult task of balancing the rules governing use of free spectrum with the Communications Act of 1934, which makes it a crime to interfere with legal radio communications.
Follow me on Twitter.