FCC to Consider Incentive Auction in 2.5 GHz Band; NPRM Approved 4-0
The FCC approved 4-0 an NPRM on ways to spark interest in the 2.5 GHz band. The item was changed while on the eighth floor to ask additional questions about how to make better use of the band, for example, holding an incentive auction like the one held for broadcast TV, officials said Thursday. Few carriers are expected to pursue the band, which is largely controlled by Sprint, despite the push (see 1805040036). The band, once dedicated to use by schools through the instructional television fixed service starting in 1963, was made available for other uses through the educational broadband service (EBS) launched by the FCC 2004.
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Commissioners said after the meeting it’s unclear whether industry will be interested. “That’s why we do an NPRM,” said Commissioner Mike O’Rielly. “We’re going to get a bunch of comments and we’ll see what direction they go. … There are difficulties.”
O’Rielly said in his meeting statement he has concerns about some of the proposals. “I am troubled about the possibility of repeating past spectrum policy mistakes by creating new local priority filing windows for preferred entities,” he said. “It is one thing to allow long-standing incumbents greater flexibility to put their spectrum to better use or participate in the secondary market, it is quite another to issue new licenses for free or on the cheap.”
The 2496-2690 MHz band “constitutes the single largest band of contiguous spectrum below 3 gigahertz and is prime spectrum for next generation mobile operations, including 5G,” said a release. “The NPRM proposes to modernize and rationalize the EBS spectrum in the 2.5 GHz band to allow more flexible use. The item proposes to rationalize the service areas of existing EBS licenses and to provide additional flexibility to current and future EBS licensees."
Chairman Ajit Pai said he's “bullish” on the possibilities raised by the examination of the 2.5 GHz band. The band goes unused in about half the U.S., he said. “This must change,” Pai said. “We need to get this valuable spectrum into the hands of those who will provide service, including 5G, to Americans across the country, particularly in rural areas where the spectrum is currently mostly unused. So today, we take the first step.”
“The overwhelming majority of EBS spectrum is not being used for educational broadband,” said Commissioner Brendan Carr. “Because of the commission’s outdated or incorrect judgments about the band’s best use, schools and wireless providers have had to devote a lot of resources to work around our rules.” The FCC has lots of tools available to advance its goals, Carr said: “As the tortured history of the 2.5 GHz band shows, command and control set-asides and restrictions on spectrum use are not the most effective way to serve students.”
Carr said he's pleased the order was changed to address his and other commissioner concerns. “I appreciate the chairman’s willingness to accept edits to inquire about the downsides of these filing windows and to seek broader comment,” O’Rielly said.
Commissioner Jessica Rosenworcel said she hopes the FCC can use the band as a way to target the homework gap. “While we seek comment on how to increase flexibility for existing licensees, we must be mindful of the educational imperatives that have always informed their use,” she said. Addressing the band is “challenging,” she said during a news conference. “This rulemaking is a fair effort to start a discussion,” she said. “We need to be really creative. I think revisiting the idea of spectrum incentive auctions may be a part of that and also considering overlay licenses.”
“Removing hurdles to putting EBS spectrum to more intensive use can help with our shared commitments to connect more of our communities with broadband and make America first in #5G,” tweeted NTIA Administrator David Redl.
“We need more spectrum in the pipeline to meet the ever increasing demands for wireless connections,” said Margaret McCarthy, executive director of Mobile Future. “The FCC is looking to free up swaths of the airwaves all over the map -- everything from the planning for the 28 and 24 GHz auctions to access to mid-band spectrum like the 2.5 GHz NPRM approved today.”
Meeting Notebook
O’Rielly is ready to vote on an order making changes to the national broadcast ownership cap “whenever it’s put in front of me,” he said Thursday in response to questions at an FCC news conference about whether the agency would seek to change the cap before a decision on the UHF discount by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit (see 1805090075). Carr declined to comment on that, and Chairman Ajit Pai referred to his recent testimony before the House Appropriations Committee, when he said he couldn’t “prejudge” the national cap proceeding and declined to estimate when the FCC will vote on Sinclair buying Tribune. The FCC “cannot proceed” with major decisions until the court reaches a decision, said Rosenworcel. “I don’t know how we could act right now without having resolution from the court on those issues, because I think our decision would be lawless.”
Commissioners also unanimously voted in favor of a media modernizationNPRM that seeks comment on doing away with rules requiring physical posting of broadcast licenses at station premises. The rules date back to predecessor agency the Federal Radio Commission, but their purpose has never been adequately explained, said Pai. Since all of the information displayed on a broadcast license is available online, the rule may no longer have a point, he said. “I truly believe that this proceeding will confirm that this rule should be set into an appropriate waste bin,” said O’Rielly, who included with his statement a photo of himself posing by the posted broadcast licenses in One World Trade Center in New York. The picture shows the licenses taped to a wall, but that part of the building is inaccessible to the public, O’Rielly said. “How is this rule serving the public interest?” Rosenworcel and Carr didn’t issue statements on the item.