Beyond standard GPS

The convenient positioning information of GPS--available everywhere and all the time--is critical for many commercial applications and essential for spy-thriller movie plots. Unfortunately, in normal operation, it's not nearly as accurate or universally accessible as the movie plots would have us believe. A small Utah-based company, S5 Wireless, wants to pick up where GPS leaves off, with a terrestrial-antenna-based system that a company founder describes as a "poor man's LoJack or OnStar." The company plans to begin build-out of its antenna system next year, with initial installations in major cities and a gradual expansion across the country. If you thought something like Google's "My Location" was a privacy threat, wait until gum-stick sized radios are available at low cost. Position-tracking may be in for a huge change.

For more on S5's wireless plans:
- Read the service plan article at CIO-Today