Demand for 700 MHz spectrum in the coming auction could drop if t...
Demand for 700 MHz spectrum in the coming auction could drop if the FCC lets unlicensed mobile devices provide mobile Internet and home networking service in the “white spaces” between TV channels, a group of broadcasters told FCC officials…
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last week in meetings, an ex parte filing shows. “Why would one arm of the government, namely the FCC, pursue a proceeding that would enable the unlicensed device developers to use television frequencies, at the same time that the same government is hoping that these and other types of devices would drive demand for the frequencies to be auctioned?” the filing said. FCC offices were toured last week by officials from the Association for Maximum Service TV, the Utah Broadcasters Association, the National Alliance of State Broadcasters Associations, the Pennsylvania Association of Broadcasters and the Nevada Broadcasters Association, as well as an Alaskan broadcaster. Industry representatives met separately with Office of Engineering and Technology officials including Julius Knapp, Media Bureau staffers, aides to Commissioners Deborah Tate and Michael Copps, and an adviser to Chairman Kevin Martin. The broadcasters questioned the timing of the white spaces rulemaking and its connection to the DTV transition. They cited what they see as a double standard for licensed TV stations. “Why also would the FCC be so careful as to prevent one digital television station from causing more than .05% interference to another digital television station… but not seem to care about interference caused to potentially hundreds of millions of TV receivers throughout the country?” they said. And use of the devices could jeopardize broadcasters’ emergency role as “the premier ‘first informer,'” they said. “The entire concept of allowing such devices flies in the face of everything that the FCC, the Department of Homeland Security, state and local emergency management authorities, the broadcast industry and other stakeholders have worked so hard to preserve and protect,” they said.