Is the spectrum just too complex for reporters?

[Demagitator]

Nieman Watchdog Blog, MA



Is the spectrum just too complex for reporters?
ASK THIS | February 21, 2008

The electromagnetic spectrum is incredibly valuable, worth perhaps a trillion dollars. But its parts are auctioned off cheaply or given away by the government to a few knowledgeable people who then make fortunes. And the story is just about never reported.


By J.H. Snider
[e-mail]

The most valuable natural resource of the information age is arguably the electromagnetic spectrum, which is used for the wireless transmission of information. In February 2008, an FCC auction of 50 MHz of spectrum raised $19 billion, the largest single auction of public property in U.S. history. Given that there is approximately 3,000 MHz of prime spectrum (plus another 297,000 MHz of non-prime spectrum), that implies a total spectrum valuation upwards of $1 trillion.

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