June 28 (ed hardy clothing) -- President Barack Obama proposed today almost doubling the airwaves available for smartphones,

laptop connections to the Internet and new wireless devices.

Obama signed a memorandum that commits the U.S. to free up 500 megahertz of government and commercial spectrum in the next 10 years, to meet demands for mobile access

to broadband services.

The proposals may face resistance from television station owners such as CBS Corp. and News Corp.'s Fox Broadcasting that gave up airwaves as part of their switch to

digital signals last year, and have sought to keep their remaining allocation. Wireless carriers led by AT&T Inc. are seeking more spectrum.

Obama's proposals embraced the National Broadband Plan offered in March by the Federal Communications Commission, led by Obama appointee Julius Genachowski. It called

for providing more spectrum for services such as mobile phones. The capacity of U.S. wireless networks has been strained by the proliferation of devices such as Apple

Inc.'s iPhone.

"America's future competitiveness and global technology leadership depend, in part, upon the availability of additional spectrum," Obama said in the memorandum. "The

world is going wireless, and we must not fall behind ed hardy bags."

The president's plan, which requires legislation, would draw on airwaves the administration considers underutilized. Revenue from auctioning the freed-up spectrum

would help build a mobile broadband system for public-safety agencies as well as for deficit reduction, according to a White House statement.
In April, Gordon Smith, president of the association representing stations and the four broadcast networks --CBS, Fox, Walt Disney Co.'s ABC and General Electric Co.'s

NBC Universal -- called the plan "the great spectrum grab" and said it was an "unnecessary government intervention."

Obama's proposal is a "win for all Americans as it will drive innovation" and will lead to billions of dollars in investment for spectrum and networks, Steve Largent,

president of CTIA-The Wireless Association, a Washington-based trade group, said today in a statement.

Since releasing its broadband plan in March the FCC has declared the wireless industry isn't sufficiently competitive, and it has restricted the rights to bid on some

spectrum by the largest U.S. mobile companies AT&T and Verizon Wireless, which is owned by Verizon Communications Inc. and Vodafone Group PLC.

"The administration's strong actions on wireless broadband will move us significantly towards sustainable economic success,
ed hardy shoes robust investment, and global leadership in innovation," Genachowski said today in an e-mailed statement.