FCC
Chairman Juliu Genachowski put in a plug Tuesday for the government sharing
the 1755-1780 MHz band with advanced wireless service, including freeing up 25
MHz ASAP that can be paired with existing spectrum already up for auction.
That
sharing proposal could mean a relocation of broadcast and cable ENG users whowere already transitioned out of their former spectrum digs as part of the DTVtransition.
"We are moving ahead in partnership with NTIA to test
LTE sharing in the 1755-1780 MHz LTE band, which could allow us to auction
paired spectrum in the next three years," he told CTIA: The Wireless Association
at its convention in New Orleans Tuesday, according to a copy of his speech.
"Given the huge amount of money and time it would take to move all of the
federal systems," he said, "estimated at $18 billion over at least a
decade -- sharing is the most promising way forward before deadlines in the
Spectrum Act will compel us to auction the 2155-2180 band unpaired."
The National Telecommunications & Information
Administration has identified 95 MHz for spectrum that could be freed up by
moving or sharing, but FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski doesn't want the 25MHZ
of that band that could be immediately paired with existing spectrum to be held
up in a longer-range effort to free up all 95 MHz.
NTIA has said that it can put a priority on that 25 MHz, a
point Assistant Secretary Lawrence Strickling made again Tuesday in the wake of
the chairman's remarks about their joint spectrum-freeing effort.
"NTIA is committed to President Obama's ambitious goal to
nearly double the amount of commercial spectrum available this decade," he
said. "We look forward to working with the FCC to explore spectrum sharing
opportunities in the 1755-1850 MHz band. In collaboration with federal agencies
and the wireless industry, NTIA and the FCC will work to identify sharing
solutions that can enable spectrum to be put to commercial use more quickly and
in a more cost-efficient manner than attempting to move all federal operations
from the band."
