Spectrum 101

What do the internet, radio, GPS, your cell phone, television, and satellites have in common? They’re all connected by invisible airwaves that we call spectrum.

Spectrum is shorthand for the radio spectrum, electromagnetic waves with different frequencies—or wavelengths—over which we transmit video, audio, and data. Different usable frequencies are better suited to different applications, but almost all of us use spectrum in one way or another every single day.

Governments control the rights to these airwaves and auction them off at different intervals, usually to telecom companies like Verizon or AT&T in the U.S. or Rogers or Bell in Canada. Those companies spend millions to develop the infrastructure for cell phones, WiFi, and other devices.

Because only so many frequencies exist, spectrum is a fixed resource. The value of the airwaves themselves is based on location, which means spectrum in higher-demand areas such as highly populated cities tends to be much more valuable.

Telecoms have been buying billions of dollars’ worth of spectrum and hoarding it to keep it out of the hands of competitors, a practice known as “land-banking.” Concern is now growing that with the increasing proliferation of devices, demand for spectrum will soon outstrip supply.

Fortunately, we are developing ways to use spectrum resources more efficiently, like how developers build high-rises instead of sprawling new communities to allow more people to live in high-value real estate.

Ioticiti owns many spectrum licenses which we have woven into a network connecting major metropolitan markets (and many remote and rural areas) across Canada and the U.S. But our network is different than the ones at standard telecoms: It is purpose-built specifically for Industrial IoT applications, and operates on a different frequency with enhanced security.

Applications delivered over our network help monitor and maintain critical infrastructure, ensuring, for example, that our water stays clean and our air clear. And Ioticiti’s infrastructure costs are just a fraction of other networks.

Learn more about Ioticiti’s network.