Today marks the end of a battle that has lasted for more than two years, with each side predicting apocalyptic consequences should it lose. Not the fight for the presidency — the one pitting Google against Dolly Parton. The titan of Silicon Valley and the queen of country are two of the many combatants in a high-tech dispute over precious slices of the nation's airwaves. The issue comes to a head on Election Day, when the Federal Communications Commission votes on a proposal to make a disputed chunk of radio spectrum available for public use. Google, Microsoft, Hewlett-Packard and other technology companies say the spectrum could be used by a whole new array of Internet-connected wireless gadgets. They say freeing it up would encourage innovation and investment in much the same way that the spread of Wi-Fi technology has. (This would generate more business for tech companies.) But a coalition of old-guard media — from television networks to Broadway producers — is objecting to the proposal, saying it needs a closer look. The opponents argue that signals sent over those frequencies could interfere with broadcasts and wireless microphones at live productions.
