At a press briefing sponsored by the Wireless Innovation Alliance, a new organization promoting the use of so-called "white space," Inslee said federal guidelines are needed.

"We want to continue to let the commission know that there's broad congressional support for moving forward," he said. The lawmaker said the spectrum would improve broadband access in rural areas, and would boost emergency-response capabilities and educational opportunities.

Blackburn emphasized that new devices and services would be unleashed with the technology, providing fresh opportunities for the creative community, including musicians and filmmakers. "We know that there are things that we will not be able to live without," she said of the electronic gadgets on the horizon.

Following his remarks, Inslee downplayed broadcaster concerns that portable wireless devices operating in the bands might interfere with digital television signals, to be adopted nationwide on Feb. 17, 2009.

"It is the appropriate thing to demand proof that this could be done," he said, noting that testing is ongoing. "The first run at a technology frequently will have glitches that you're resolving -- and we're resolving those now," he said. While Inslee is confident there will not be problems, Congress always could intervene, he said.

"This is a race, and early adopters win the race internationally," Inslee added, underscoring the importance of moving swiftly to tap the resource rather than waiting until after the DTV transition is complete, as broadcasters have urged. Asked whether tech companies should focus instead on offering broadband via airwaves to be relinquished as television stations shift from analog to digital, Inslee said, "It's not an either/or."

"The technologists that I'm talking to see enormous potential in these white spaces," said Inslee, whose district is home to Microsoft and other technology firms. He acknowledged that his views are shaped in part by the tech sector's excitement about white spaces.

In September, broadcasters held a press conference to warn that their historic switch to digital could be jeopardized by handheld devices operating simultaneously in TV bands. The FCC is sorting out the competing claims.

But Michael Calabrese, vice president of the New America Foundation, which has concluded that interference concerns are overblown, noted that Philips, a major TV manufacturer, is among the white-spaces proponents.

"Every time there's a technological breakthrough, there's always worries" about interference with incumbent uses, he said, noting that the FCC has the expertise to avoid such problems.