Skip the navigation
News

FCC approves plan for major wireless spectrum auction

Spectum in 700MHz band to have greater range for broadband

By Grant Gross
April 26, 2007 12:00 PM ET

IDG News Service - WASHINGTON - The U.S. Federal Communications Commission has approved a plan for auctions of wireless spectrum in the 700MHz band, taking the first step toward the multi-billion-dollar sale of spectrum being abandoned by television stations.

The FCC late Wednesday approved an auction plan that would sell pieces of the spectrum in chunks of varying geographic sizes, including metropolitan areas, larger regional economic zones and multi-state regions. The FCC also will invite comments on a number of proposals for the spectrum, made available after the U.S. Congress voted last year to require U.S. TV stations to switch to digital broadcasts and abandon channels 51 to 69 by February 2009.

Several large tech companies had called for the FCC to auction spectrum in large geographic areas. Auctions of 60MHz of spectrum, expected to raise at least US$10 billion, are required by early 2008.

Tech and telecom companies are eyeing the new spectrum for a variety of wireless broadband services. Each tower transmitting in the upper 700MHz spectrum band can cover up to four times the large geographic area as towers in higher bands, experts say.

The new spectrum will give many U.S. broadband customers the choice of a "third pipe," FCC Chairman Kevin Martin said in a statement. The spectrum auction promises to bring broadband choices not only to big cities, but to rural areas as well, he added.

"In much of the country, however, consumers have a choice of only two broadband services: cable or DSL," he said. "And in some parts of the country, consumers don???t even have that choice. We need a real third broadband competitor."

The FCC asked for comments on a number of proposals for the spectrum, including proposals by consumer groups calling themselves the Save Our Spectrum Coalition, which called for open access on a chunk of the spectrum. The FCC also mentioned Frontline Wireless LLC, which proposed that the agency license a 10MHz block under the condition that the auction winner would build a nationwide infrastructure to support a broadband network for public safety agencies.

The FCC also wants comments on other opportunities for public-private partnerships that will "help bring our first responders the benefits of broadband," Martin said.

Members of the Save Our Spectrum Coalition praised the FCC's action. "If the commission adopts the rules we suggest, consumers will benefit from having more companies offer more types of services in many different areas," said Gigi Sohn, president of Public Knowledge, a member of the coalition.

But Frontline officials expressed concern over what they called the FCC's "hesitancy" to push harder on the company's proposal to provide the public safety network. Much remains to be done to make the proposal a reality, Frontline said.

Reprinted with permission from IDG.net. Story copyright 2010 International Data Group. All rights reserved.
Additional Resources
Forrester Consulting - Optimizing Users and Applications in a Mobile World
WHITE PAPER
Solving application issues over the WAN requires careful consideration. Based on their independent research, Forrester Consulting offers recommendations on how to tackle application performance issues, insufficient bandwidth and the inability to quickly restore users in a disaster.

Read now.

Security KnowledgeVault
WHITE PAPER
Security is not an option. This KnowledgeVault Series offers professional advice how to be proactive in the fight against cybercrimes and multi-layered security threats; how to adopt a holistic approach to protecting and managing data; and how to hire a qualified security assessor. Make security your Number 1 priority.

Read now.

Cut Communications Costs Once and for All
WHITE PAPER
New IP-based communications systems are being deployed by small and midsized businesses at a rapid rate. Learn how these organizations are enabling faster responsiveness, creating better customer experiences, speeding office or mobile interactions, and dramatically reducing existing communications costs.

Read now.

Mobile and Wireless White Papers
Digital Transformation: Creating New Business Models Where Digital Meets Physical
Individuals and businesses alike are embracing the digital revolution. Social networks and digital devices are being used to engage government, businesses and civil...
Empowering Your Mobile Worker
Today's most productive employees are mobile, and your company's IT strategy must be ready to support them with 24/7 access to the business...
An Interactive Guide: Bring Your Own Device
BYOD presents significant security and management challenges to IT departments who want to take advantage of the trend, but still protect corporate assets....
Calculating ROI for Mobile Client Acceleration
As mobile devices continue to expand in business use, ensuring these devices have optimal performance is becoming an IT imperative. This EMA paper...
Tablet Computing Without Compromise
This paper provides an overview of how and why that migration-from any old tablet to Windows tablets-came to be.
All Mobile and Wireless White Papers
Mobile and Wireless Webcasts
Live Webcast
North Pole to South Seas: Overcoming the Pitfalls of remote Performance
In today's always-on world, connectivity is a business requirement. You need the tools that allow you to operate as if you were on...
Supporting Mobile Productivity With A Limited IT Budget
Join us and hear from Kaseya mobile IT management experts as we discuss core strategies for supporting the mobile revolution on a shoestring...
North Pole to South Seas: Overcoming the Pitfalls of remote Performance
In today's always-on world, connectivity is a business requirement. You need the tools that allow you to operate as if you were on...
Unified Communications 101
What's the best way to implement a unified communications solution for your organization?
QNX® and BlackBerry® PlayBook™ Tablet.
RIM's multi-processor, multi-tasking BlackBerry PlayBook runs a new Tablet OS powered by QNX, a bullet-proof microkernel operating system. This track will take a...
A Close Look at Tablets
Learn More
All Mobile and Wireless Webcasts
Newsletter Sign-Up

Receive the latest news test, reviews and trends on your favorite technology topics

Choose a newsletter
  1. View all newsletters | Privacy Policy
IT Jobs