In the near future, the city of Cincinnati, Ohio will become the first municipality in the country to receive broadband over power lines (BPL). The service, which promises at least one megabit per second download and upload speeds, can be accessed via any electrical socket using an adapter that closely resembles a large cell-phone charger. The technology is proven, the Federal Communications Commission is endorsing it, and unlike DSL or wireless, BPL can go anywhere that power goes. And BPL is cheap: the basic one mbps service is priced at $29.95 per month.
In the near future, the city of Cincinnati, Ohio will become the first municipality in the country to receive broadband over power lines (BPL). The service, which promises at least one megabit per second download and upload speeds, can be accessed via any electrical socket using an adapter that closely resembles a large cell-phone charger. The technology is proven, the Federal Communications Commission is endorsing it, and unlike DSL or wireless, BPL can go anywhere that power goes. And BPL is cheap: the basic one mbps service is priced at $29.95 per month.
While BPL is cool, the implications of ubiquitous broadband are far cooler, even disruptive. Imagine what your television, game console, stereo, TiVO, and any number of other devices could do if connecting them to the Internet required nothing more than plugging them in and turning them on. Wireless hot-spots would require nothing more than an electric socket and an antenna.
And just think what will happen when your local power utility challenges your local telephone and cable company for your broadband dollar. In my neighborhood, Pacific Gas and Electric could easily become Pacific Gas and Electric, Internet, and Entertainment. Plug in (literally) a voice-over-IP (VoIP) phone and PG&E can tack on “Telephone” to their moniker as well.
Other “What If?” questions spring to mind: What if all television signals traveled over broadband? What if every device was…
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