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Feb. 26, 2010

The FCC says it is planning to free up 500 MHz of spectrum for mobile broadband over the next ten years.

FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski said in a speech before the New America Foundation yesterday "spectrum is really like the oxygen of mobile broadband service. Without sufficient broadband spectrum, we will starve mobile Internet of the nourishment it really needs to thrive as a platform for innovation, job creation and economic growth in the U.S."

Genachowski emphasized a voluntary approach but didn't specifically rule out a mandatory reallocation of spectrum resources if the voluntary approach failed to provide enough bandwidth for mobile users.

He then recommended auctioning off more spectrum to fix what he called a "looming spectrum crunch" caused by soaring demand for mobile data. His proposed auction would allow existing spectrum licensees, such as television broadcasters in spectrum-starved markets, to sell off their unused spectrum.

Genachowski said current data suggests "inefficiencies in the current allocation" of bandwidth, adding that the highly valuable spectrum currently allocated for broadcast television isn't being used very efficiently. In fact, he was quick to point out that much isn't being used at all.

In all, about 300 megahertz of spectrum have been set aside for broadcast TV. Only 36 MHz are typically used for broadcast in markets with less than 1 million people and only about 100 MHz is used in cities with more than 1 million people.

Genachowski said that this has to change and change real soon.

Even in major metropolitan areas, only about 150 MHz of the allocated 300 MHz are used for broadcast television.

The FCC's final National Broadband Report will be released around March 17.

Last October, the FCC warned the U.S. government of a looming spectrum crisis if it fails to find better ways to come up with more bandwidth for mobile devices.

Genachowski said the government is tripling the amount of spectrum available for commercial uses.

The issue is that many industry experts predict wireless traffic will increase more than thirty times because of online video and other bandwidth-heavy applications.

The FCC is asking wireless industry executives to imagine a scenario when the number of computers with mobile broadband quadruples, or when every mobile phone user upgrades to an iPhone, Palm Pre, BlackBerry or other bandwidth-hungry device.

Genachowski also promised "a full-throated, strategic look" at how to close that gap between demand and supply, declaring it one of the FCC's highest priorities. The review will consider reallocating existing wireless spectrum now used for other purposes, and encouraging development of new technologies that use spectrum more efficiently.

He also added that the FCC is open to ideas.

"I believe that the biggest threat to the future of mobile in America is the looming spectrum crisis," he said in a prepared speech to industry trade group CTIA - The Wireless Association.

The FCC has also opened up some of the nation's airwaves for unlicensed uses such as Wi-Fi connections. In 2008, it voted to allow the use of fallow portions of television airwaves known as "white spaces" to deliver wireless broadband services.

The FCC has raised tens of billions of dollars by auctioning off airwaves to the nation's big wireless carriers to provide mobile broadband access and wireless applications, which often require large amounts of bandwidth.

Genachowski still said that lots more spectrum is needed nevertheless. He said there were "no easy pickings" to strip spectrum used for other purposes for use in mobile devices but that there was no choice.

The CTIA has called on the FCC to move quickly to make more wireless spectrum available. The public safety community is also hungry for additional spectrum to build wireless networks that can allow police officers, fire fighters, medical workers and other first responders to talk with each other in emergencies.

Genachowski also renewed praise for AT&T's decision announced Tuesday to let iPhone owners to use Internet calling services on its wireless network. The phone giant, the exclusive wireless provider for Apple Inc.'s iPhone, had until now allowed Internet calling services to work on the popular device only over Wi-Fi connections.

Genachowski, one of three Democrats on the five-member FCC, gave no indication that AT&T's move would soften his desire for rules to prohibit broadband providers from favoring or discriminating against certain types of Internet traffic flowing over their lines. The FCC is scheduled to vote on regulations this month.

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Source: The Federal Communications Commission.