Cool, but it says nothing about what will happen to people, biologically speaking, when they can no longer avoid regularly basking in yet another form of electromagnetic field (EMF) or other background field that basically didn't exist 50 years ago.

I know this is just a proof of concept at this point; still, I'd feel much better if people promoting these innovations would show evidence of thinking through all the ramifications rather than considering them as if they either had zero impact or side effect on people, or that any side effects are insignificant. I'd even respect an opinion that it's utterly safe, if it was credible and informed and put out by someone with no vested interest in the outcome.

Bob, my thoughts exactly. Hmmm... Perhaps someone could show that sitting in this field can recharge people as well. Now that would be worth investing in!

How will this affect pacemakers, for example? Or, for that matter, the electronics in all of those devices you want to charge?

Transmission of energy without wires is nothing new - Think early radio. If we could efficiently capture what's already out there, on nearly every frequency in many places, THAT would be revolutionary.

Tranmission of power between antennas requires the antennas to have a resonant frequency. This demonstration was with a large antenna and low frequency - a demonstration of 100 year old technology. Putting that large antenna into a place that is compatible with an already crowded consumer device without causing other EMI issues seems unlikely enough for me to mark this idea as a 'bad egg' that doesn't really need to be attempted to hatch.

Who's going to pay for the electricity?

Maybe somebody will figure out just the right combination of metals for the antennae transmitting at just the right frequency to produce large amounts of electricity out of small amounts of material. If that happens we may have something, but I'm not holding my breath waiting for it to happen either.

What happens when lightening?

Q. Who is going to pay for the electricity
R.Q. Who pays for air and sunlight?

Nicola Tesla demonstrated wireless power distribution this technology nearly a hundred years ago...

Is it any wonder that the inventor and implementer of motor, generator, transformers, alternating current, etc. was employed by Westinghouse whose goal was to commercialize the distribution of power.

e=mc2 tells us that everything is made from an unimaginable amount of power. Why is it that mankind is focussed on the crudest possible ways to unlock it?

Come on people, let's roll up our sleeves and figure out a safe way to unlock the power that is all around us.

Re: several posters concerned about effect on people.
I think we are starting to live R. A. Heinlein's "Waldo" (read it if you did not!). Lead-impregnated underwear, anyone? ;-)

Another question is just as important as side-effects: if inefficient transmission is the key enabler of this technology, how much energy is lost? In other words, how many kilowatts of energy must be transmitted in order for one kilowatt of energy to be received -- ignoring for the moment the inefficiency across the entire process from the energy being generated in the first place and getting to the point of transmission?

Not to mention: what do FCC regulations say about putting anything close to this level of electromagnetic energy into the air?

Dave wrote: "If we could efficiently capture what's already out there, on nearly every frequency in many places, THAT would be revolutionary."

I quite agree, and have been working on that little project in my spare evenings for the past couple of years.

Think of it! "Recycled" electromagnetic energy!

I seem to remember seeing a rig for supplying power to a brace of batteries by sticking an antenna into the already existing energy field near high power transmission lines. Widely used by interlopers to avoid utility bills in the "outback". As stated previously, it's all part of the electromagnetic spectrum and I used to light up a lot of neon (and freak out the geeks when instrument panels that used mini-neon bulbs would blink randomly)without wires at CAVS when I was at MIT in 1978. That's how I got into WiFi.

Didn't Nicola Tesla do that alrady? A long time ago? I'd prefer the experiment of the Erie cancer treatment researcher that burned the hydrogen from seawater in a test tube excited by RF. Seems more portable and less dangerous than saturating the air with more large scale EM energy flying around. If it can be found to be more efficient, it's a plus rather than a liability. Lots of water around, eh?