White space goes live

When the U.S. made the switch to digital TV, it also ditched a piece of spectrum that analog TV had used to broadcast. That spectrum, known as white space, has long been known as a viable network for high-speed Internet, and yesterday the first White Space networklaunched in Wilmington, North Carolina. According to Forbes, “white space is located in a lower spectrum band than Wi-Fi. Its different physics mean signals can travel further and better penetrate barriers,” which is a big reason some people say it could be bigger than Wi-Fi and a potential boon for rural broadband.