ITU Studies Favor Broadcast Frequencies for Global Mobile
GENEVA -- Years-long research by corporate and government experts involved in ITU-R favors globally harmonizing broadcast frequencies for International Mobile Telecommunications-2000 (IMT-2000). That was the message from a June 25-26 ITU-R study group (SG-8) meeting on mobile, radiodetermination, amateur and related satellite services. The group also gave preliminary approval to an international wideband and broadband communications standard for public protection and disaster relief, officials said.
Sign up for a free preview to unlock the rest of this article
Timely, relevant coverage of court proceedings and agency rulings involving tariffs, classification, valuation, origin and antidumping and countervailing duties. Each day, Trade Law Daily subscribers receive a daily headline email, in-depth PDF edition and access to all relevant documents via our trade law source document library and website.
Studies on adding frequency bands for IMT-2000 will converge with political and corporate pressures at the October 22-November 16 World Radiocommunication Conference (WRC). There, ITU will come to terms on more frequencies for the technology. The WRC may simplify IMT-2000 to IMT to account for enhancements.
Frequencies in the 2.5-2.7 GHz range already are designated for IMT-2000 use. But according to SG-8 studies it will be tough to use 2.7-2.9 GHz for IMT since aeronautical radiolocation is already there, said Chris van Diepenbeek, manager-international relations in the Dutch Radio Communications Agency, speaking as chairman of ITU-R SG8.
To some administrations, 3.4-3.6 GHz looks easier for IMT use, van Diepenbeek said. Others are complicated by incumbent use, he said. “Administrations would have to answer the question of whether they are prepared to remove the incumbents in favor of IMT, in case they consider a need for extension of the spectrum available for IMT.” IMT’s problems with 3.6-3.8 GHz are comparable but more difficult, van Diepenbeek said; fixed satellite services are the incumbent. There is less allure in using higher frequencies in the 3.8-4.2 GHz range for mobile services, since reduced propagation requires more capital investment to cover the same area.
Administrations are deciding now whether any digital dividend in the 470-862 MHz range will be available for mobile or broadcast, van Diepenbeek said. The second step is to see where to harmonize it internationally. Should the WRC decide to allow frequency use by IMT-2000, administrations need not use it exclusively for IMT-2000.
The meeting adopted an international standard, pending administrations’ approval, on channeling arrangements for public protection and disaster relief in the Americas and Australasia, van Diepenbeek said. Potential uses include wideband and broadband communications delivering building maps and layouts to a firefighter’s heads-up display while he is in a burning structure, he said. The 4.9 GHz channeling agreement gives manufacturers certainty on specifications around which to build equipment so signals won’t interfere, he said.
ITU-R SG8 members decided to send the IEEE 802.16/WiMAX variant radio interface for IMT-2000 to the October 15-19 Radiocommunication Assembly (RA) for consideration. The RA also will consider restructuring ITU-R’s study group structure.