Open spectrum

Ok kiddo, imagine a park with a playground where you can swing, slide, and climb. Now imagine that all the kids in the park want to use the same swings, slides, and climbing equipment at the same time, but there aren't enough for everyone to have a turn. That would make it hard for everyone to have fun!

In the same way, the "airwaves" around us are like a playground and people use it to send and receive messages wirelessly, like when you use your parent's phone or tablet to watch a video or play a game. But just like in the park, if too many people want to use the same "swings and slides" (which are different signals like radio or wifi), they can get all jumbled and hard to understand.

So, to make sure everyone can play (or communicate) freely and safely without interfering with each other, we need rules, called spectrum regulation. But some people have argued that these rules can be too restrictive, and that everyone should be able to use the airwaves as they see fit, without permission from the government or other official authorities. This idea is called open spectrum.

Proponents of open spectrum believe that it could lead to more innovation and creativity, as anyone could build devices or applications using the airwaves, like a homemade walkie-talkie or internet-enabled toaster. However, there are also concerns that open spectrum could lead to safety and privacy issues, as well as "bad actors" who could use the airwaves for harmful or illegal purposes.

So, just like in the park, some people want to stick to the rules to make sure everyone stays safe and happy, while others want more freedom to play in their own way. It's up to us as a society to decide what kind of playground we want, and how we want to use it.