As the goals and priorities of Congress and the Federal Communications Commission become apparent, policymakers would be wise to follow voters’ call for policies that promote innovation, deregulation, affordability and economic growth.
A critical component in promoting innovation, affordability and economic growth in a deregulatory environment will be additional unlicensed spectrum — the radio frequencies used for the Wi-Fi we all use at home, work and school.
Wi-Fi technology is a key driver of growth and progress. It was projected to contribute an astonishing $1.6 trillion to the economy in 2024. And it is expected to increase to $2.4 trillion in 2027.
Make no mistake: Wi-Fi is more than an add-on to wired technology. It plays a crucial role in all connectivity technologies, including mobile cellular service, which relies on offloading data from cellular networks onto Wi-Fi to free up capacity. According to a study, Wi-Fi carries between 82% and 89% of all mobile data traffic.
Policymakers must understand that when Americans browse on their smartphones, at home and away, their constituents spend most of that time connected to Wi-Fi. Even away from home, smartphone users spend 77% to 88% of their screen-on time connected to Wi-Fi.
Another recent report estimates that consumer devices relying on the 6 GHz spectrum band allocated for unlicensed use will rise from 95 million this year to 367 million in 2029 — a 288% increase. The report recommends policymakers look at freeing up additional unlicensed spectrum in the adjacent 7 GHz band as the best option to maintain U.S. leadership in Wi-Fi. Other experts echo this recommendation to make additional unlicensed spectrum available to meet future demand.
We often hear about winning the race to 5G with countries like China. Still, in the United States, Wi-Fi networks carry the majority of Americans’ data usage, handling the bulk of everyday mobile data traffic.
It turns out that China fears Wi-Fi. China, powered by decentralized American intellectual property, views Wi-Fi as a threat to its centralized model — emphasizing its critical value to U.S. innovation. Wi-Fi is one of our competitive advantages against totalitarian countries, so policymakers need to make more unlicensed spectrum available.
Without smart policies that ensure the Wi-Fi of tomorrow has the capacity it needs, there will be more bottlenecks that stifle innovation and slow down our increasingly connected world. That means more of what the voters emphatically told elected representatives they don’t want: higher prices, economic slowdowns, and government getting in the way of innovators and entrepreneurs.
The point is to keep a good thing going. With more unlicensed spectrum, we can continue to unleash Wi-Fi’s potential.
Bartlett Cleland is the executive director of the Innovation Economy Alliance. He wrote this for InsideSources.com.
