Studies have shown that owners of a cellular telephone continue to want more: more Internet, more e-mail capability, even more video. In short, they require more bandwidth. But bandwidth doesn't come cheap, as those purchasing cellular service licenses can attest. And solutions to limited bandwidth are not trivial, as any designer who has worked long hours on a digitally modulated transceiver integrated circuit (IC) will confirm. A great deal of signal processing is needed to send and receive the data, voice, and video over limited bandwidth.
Fortunately, for one of those rare times in history, a United States President, Mr. Obama, and the US Federal Communications Commission (FCC) concur on the need for additional bandwidth for broadband communications services, some 500 MHz. Television broadcasters, for example, currently own about 120 MHz worth. As its Chairman, Julius Genachowski, explained, the FCC's National Broadband Plan "will spur economic growth, promote private investment, and drive US global leadership in broadband innovation." In terms of potential wireless applications, 500 MHz is HUGE and, properly "merchandised," could indeed create jobs and give this economy a much-needed shot in the arm.