Yeah, the imminent death of the Internet has been predicted many time before. However this doesn’t bode well: FCC Clears Free Wireless Web.

A proposal to create a free, national wireless Internet service got a boost as Federal Communications Commission engineers concluded that concerns are overblown about such service interfering with other carriers.

The report clears the way for the FCC to move forward with a plan to auction off airwaves to a bidder who agrees to offer free, national wireless Internet service. The FCC is expected to finalize rules this year and could begin auctioning off airwaves in early-to-mid 2009.

If the Internet is primarly a wireless medium, will all the bogus New Deal Era policies regarding public ownership of the airwaves kick in? Will there be a blogosphere equal time rule proposed? What about material that hypersensitive Christian pansies find offensive? Hypersensitive leftist whiners? Can I say the work ‘Fuck the Congress’ or will that trigger an FCC fine? If the internet is 100% wireless what will the security model be? Will is use strong encryption, or crippled-encryption allowing Law Enforcement access to near-realtime monitoring of everything everyone does.

A free wireless network will drive out competition from Cable and DSL so you’d pretty much be stuck using this government sponsored solution.

Caveat Emptor: This product may be such crap that no one uses it. Still once the Internet is going over what used to be channel 5, the FCC will make a power grab to regulate it the same as they did Channel 5.