Big Tech Weighs In on National Spectrum Plan as NTIA Posts Comments
NTIA posted comments Wednesday on the national spectrum strategy, many of them released by those who wrote them during the prolonged federal shutdown (see 1901230028 and 1901250040). Apple and Facebook were among additional companies offering advice. Comments are here.
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Apple said the strategy should allow flexible use. Apple seeks “pursuit of a balanced spectrum policy that brings more licensed and unlicensed spectrum into use to serve consumers” and “support for band plans and technical rules in current and future spectrum proceedings that encourage investment and innovation rather than requiring particular channelization approaches and/or channel bandwidths geared to any one standard."
Facebook wants balance and flexibility. Traditional wireless, satellite and new technologies like high-altitude solar aircraft need spectrum, Facebook advised. It has invested in R&D in "these platforms, towards the common goal of expanding broadband connectivity." Connecting "the unconnected and enhancing user interfaces and device automation in the future will require a mix of technical solutions,” the company said. “Making spectrum accessible to a wide range of use cases will require spectrum to be made available under a balance of unlicensed, lightly licensed, and licensed spectrum allocation.”
Future uses of frequencies raise policy challenges, New York City said. “We see it in the lack of protection in spectrum auctions for public" TV, the city said: “We see it in the coordination, or lack thereof, of shared access to certain frequency bands. We see it in the lack of reasonable spectrum alternatives for public safety T-Band incumbents.” Federated Wireless said traditional policy of clearing federal users from a band, reallocating the frequencies and auctioning no longer will always work. “Dynamic sharing technologies are the future of spectrum management,” it commented.
The Free State Foundation urged government to get tough on agencies. NTIA “should issue an annual report calculating the market value of federal government spectrum” and give the Office of Management and Budget a role in auditing spectrum holdings, FSF said. The spectrum relocation fund should instead become a “spectrum incentive fund” and federal agencies should be assessed spectrum fees, FSF said.
Nokia said NTIA should release a road map of bands under consideration for commercial use, to focus "scarce engineering resources of both government and industry on discrete bands.” Industry-government collaboration can assess swathes "more efficiently and in a manner that promises to bring the latest technologies and value to both,” it said. Public-private partnerships also should be explored, Nokia said, citing FirstNet’s partnership with AT&T on 20 MHz of low-band spectrum for public safety.
“Exclusive use should remain the preferred spectrum access model, with flexible rights to allow wireless providers to respond quickly to market demand,” Ericsson said. Adopt “a recurring process” for filling the spectrum “pipeline” with new bands, the equipment maker said. Dish Network emphasized the importance of narrowband IoT, like its proposed network (see 1807100062).
Verizon also called for balance. The administration and the FCC should “maintain a balance between unlicensed and licensed spectrum allocations,” Verizon commented. “In light of the substantial swaths of spectrum the FCC already has earmarked for unlicensed use, identifying additional spectrum for licensed, exclusive-use is all the more important. Making additional, licensed mid-band spectrum available is particularly critical.”