IP Democracy: Broadband via Gas Lines?

In my last post I expressed hope that more broadband pipes might be built to lessen the economic friction caused by a duopoly market structure. Here’s one new approach recently added to the list of possibilities: Broadband-in-Gas (no potty jokes, please). Marguerite Reardon reports at News.com:

It may sound nuts today, but a San Diego company called Nethercomm is developing a way to use ultra wideband wireless signals to transmit data at broadband speeds through natural-gas pipes. The company claims its technology will be able to offer 100 megabits per second to every home, which is more than enough to provide voice, video and high-speed Internet access.

Nethercomm’s web site has more information, including a 51-page “proof of principal” paper.

Posted by Mitch Shapiro on November 13, 2005 8:01 PM to IP Democracy