Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to review a case study of a project to provide broadband to city‐run housing developments in San Francisco, California.
Design/methodology/approach
The paper provides a first‐person account of a broadband solution implemented by the Bay Area Wireless Research Network.
Findings
It was found that the Bay Area Wireless Network implemented an unlicensed 5.8 GHz wireless point‐to‐point link.
Research limitations/implications
The case study provides a first‐person account.
Practical implications
Creation of an unlicensed band through Part 15 and the development of open protocols such as 802.11 spawned low cost devices through efficiencies of scale, ease of use through competition of feature sets of the devices such as the user interface.
Originality/value
Digital inclusion projects such as Alice Griffith might not have been economically viable without the unlicensed bands and the open protocols. Broadband would have been at least one or two magnitudes more expensive in capital costs.
Keywords
Citation
Pozar, T. (2009), "Has “unlicensed” in Part 15 worked? A case study", info, Vol. 11 No. 5, pp. 86-91. https://doi.org/10.1108/14636690910989360
Publisher
:Emerald Group Publishing Limited
Copyright © 2009, Emerald Group Publishing Limited