In a move aimed at lessening wireless Internet congestion, the US Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is planning to increase the currently-available amount of unlicensed wireless spectrum by as much as 35 percent.

With the move marking the biggest opening up of the airwaves in ten years, the FCC commissioners voted unanimously for the opening up of 195 megahertz of extra spectrum in the 5GHz band.

Despite the fact that there has thus far been no official disclosure about when the 5GHz spectrum expansion will roll out, the increased amount of spectrum will be available for use with accredited equipment, as well as pave the way for the offloading of some of the increasing amount of data traffic on cellular networks onto Wi-Fi.

Pointing out that the decision to open more of the 5GHz spectrum will essentially help increase the availability and usefulness of both Wi-Fi and phone networks, and also apparently increase speeds to 1GBps, the FCC said that it wants to execute the plan as early as possible.

Noting that the 5GHz band "is already used for other purposes by both federal and non-federal users," FCC chairman Julius Genachowski said that the attempts to open more of the mentioned spectrum will require "significant consultation with stakeholders to enable non-interfering shared use of the spectrum;" and also added alongside: "But consultation can't be an excuse for inaction or delay."