Sports Leagues not willing to read between the “White Space” Lines

Posted on May 2nd, 2008. Written by Emmett Jones.

Thanks to Reader Livia Left for the tip!

It’s always fun to see when the various sports leagues form together like the Justice League, isn’t it? Their personal Legion of Doom? Technology Companies (Microsoft, Google, hello!). Their gripe? White Space. Details from the Washington Post,

In a filing, the leagues asked Federal Communications Commission require the technology companies that want to sell wireless white space devices to prove that their devices won’t interfere with wireless microphones, which already operate in white spaces…

Ken Kerschbaumer, executive director of the Sports Video Group, said the devices could knock out wireless communications systems like headsets used by coaches, microphones used by referees, and microphones used by journalists.

The FCC is currently testing white space devices to ensure that sports leagues and the general public at large don’t run into snags down the road. I assume that the idea of white space device usage will be throughly tested before anything is released to the general public, but you have to understand why the sports leagues are adamant about protecting their investment. What’s going to happen the first time a white space device fails and interferes with some signal during a football game? Or when a crew chief is talking to a race car driver during a NASCAR race. In theory, tech companies are dealing with a technology that could damage sports revenue or maybe even cause bodily injury.

…or maybe these are just the rantings of a sports fan who’d much rather be able to watch the Super Bowl without interruption instead of making sure those in rural areas have high speed internet access.

Washington Post: Another jab at ‘White Spaces’

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