The FCC appears more likely than not to allow non-public...

almost no use of the band to date (CD June 14 p2). “While we believe that all primary uses of the 4.9 GHz band should remain limited to operations in support of public safety ... we tentatively conclude that expanding eligibility for commercial use on a secondary basis would benefit and reduce regulatory burdens on non-public safety entities by removing a barrier to entry to use the 4.9 GHz band,” the FCC said. The notice observes the proximity of the band to the 5 GHz band, already widely used by unlicensed Wi-Fi networks. “We seek comment on whether expanding eligibility might improve the availability, variety, and economics of equipment that uses the band, to the benefit of public safety operations,” the notice said. “Should the Commission open eligibility to commercial users on a secondary or other noninterfering basis subject to a shutdown feature to enable priority access by public safety entities?” The notice asks if business should be allowed to use the band possibly “based upon dynamic access control using a database similar to the TV White Spaces database.” The FCC also asks whether critical infrastructure industry entities, including utilities, “should be eligible to hold 4.9 GHz licenses on a primary basis, thus removing the requirement for a sharing agreement” with public safety. The FCC also asks for hard data on the relative costs and benefits of requiring greater coordination in the band. “Although quantifying the benefits of coordination to primary users and the added costs imposed on applicants may be difficult, we believe it is important to determine whether adopting a coordination procedure will significantly benefit the public,” the FCC said. “Are there interference issues today that cannot be resolved by the requirements of this rule? How would the 4.9 GHz license environment look if the Commission does not alter 4.9 GHz coordination requirements? ... Are there non-regulatory alternatives to new coordination procedures?"