FCC: What to do with unused spectrum?
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After tossing Wi-Fi start-up bids for exclusive control of fallow spectrum, federal regulators want public input on how to proceed. Will a new fight over "open access" rules emerge?
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InfoWorld - The high bids totalled $3.2 billion in the U.S. Federal Communications Commission'sÂ auction of wireless spectrum licenses in the 700MHz bandÂ after three rounds and a day and a half of bidding.
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Just buy a license, and do what you will The EU has released a policy document calling for frequencies to be allocated with no restriction put on what they can be used for.â¦
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AT&amp;T hasn&#39;t decided whether it will bid for the highly desirable 700MHz band because it doesn&#39;t know if it can build a profitable business, given the open-access rules set for the wireless spectrum by the U.S. Federal Communications Commission in July.Calling the rules &quot;interesting,&quot; AT&amp;T&#39;s CEO Randall Stephenson said the company is hard at work crunching numbers and analyzing business scenarios, but hasn&#39;t reached a conclusion yet.&quot;Is there a business model there? I&#39;m not sure if there is or not,&quot; he said Friday at the&#160;Web 2.0 Summit, where he answered questions from conference chair John Battelle and from audience members.The FCC conditions, which include&#160;open-access rules on a third of the spectrum, have been a major source of controversy.The winner of 22MHz of spectrum must allow any wireless devices to connect to the network, permitting wireless telephone customers to use handset devices from other carriers. The winning bidder also can&#39;t block or slow down wireless and Web content from competitors.Some telecom carriers wanted no conditions, while some consumer advocacy groups and Google wanted the FCC to require that winning bidders also resell the spectrum at wholesale rates to competitors, something the FCC didn&#39;t adopt.The FCC is scheduled to auction 62MHz of spectrum in the 700MHz band beginning in January. The spectrum is ideal for long-range wireless telephone and broadband services, with signals that travel up to four times farther than in higher spectrum bands.&quot;It&#39;s a huge opportunity. It&#39;s beachfront property. When it comes to buying spectrum, it&#39;s the best you&#39;re going to find for a long time,&quot; Stephenson said.Data consumption on wireless networks is growing fourfold year over year, so a company&#160;such as&#160;AT&amp;T needs to bulk up on spectrum to keep up with the demand, he said.&quot;It&#39;s very obvious we&#39;re going to have to add to our spectrum holdings,&quot; he said.That&#39;s why AT&amp;T earlier this month reached an agreement to&#160;buy 12MHz of high-speed wireless spectrum&#160;in the 700MHz band from Aloha Partners for $2.5 billion.&quot;It&#39;s the first time, I think, that we&#39;ve ever paid $2.5 billion for a company that had no revenue,&quot; Stephenson said.The Aloha spectrum covers 196 million U.S. residents, including 72 of the 100 largest markets in the United States.In other matters, Stephenson said he was very satisfied with the&#160;iPhone deal between his company and Apple.&quot;I&#39;m not sure I could have asked for much more out of it than what we got,&quot; he said.Asked to comment on the decision to use the slower EDGE network for the iPhone, Stephenson said it was a request from Apple CEO Steve Jobs.&quot;He wanted a broad ubiquitous data network. The EDGE network is the only data network that covers the entire United States,&quot; he said. The situation will improve as AT&amp;T upgrades markets to 3G, he said.Stephenson acknowledged that AT&amp;T&#39;s directory assistance business is being challenged by ad-supported options from Internet companies&#160;such as&#160;Google.&quot;We better get our advertising-supported [directory assistance] model up fast,&quot; he said, adding that AT&amp;T is building such a service internally.On a lighter note, he said he&#39;s &quot;envious&quot; of Google and the success it has had with its business model. &quot;It&#39;s a great gig if you can get it,&quot; he said.(Grant Gross in Washington, D.C. contributed with this story.)
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The FCC leads the campaign to rein in 'indecency' on the airwaves. But in a world of unlimited spectrum, some think shackling the First Amendment is what's obscene. By Frank Rose from Wired magazine.
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U.K. spectrum freed as TV converts from analog to digital could be allocated to WiMax, shrinking digital divide, commissioner says.
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After tossing WiFi start-up bids for exclusive control of fallow spectrum, federal regulators want public input on how to proceed. Will a new fight over "open access" rules emerge?
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By Jim Puzzanghera  WASHINGTON  --  As new high-definition televisions fly off store shelves, millions of old sets soon could be flying into the trash.
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The Federal Communications Commission Thursday (Sept. 9) added spectrum to be used for advanced wireless services (AWS) such as 3G data services.
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If the FCC's auction of former UHF bandwidth were to end here, it might raise over $19 billion. But with bidding activity slowing to a crawl, the Commission has one more tool in its arsenal to squeeze out some more value.
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The FCC releases names of 266 companies officially planning to bid in the government's upcoming 700-MHz-spectrum auction. More than half those botched their initial applications, including big names like Verizon, AT&T,  Qualcomm and Alltel. They have until Jan. 4 to qualify for the auction.
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(InfoWorld) - Plans for valuable wireless spectrum being considered by the U.S. Federal Communications Commission may not go far enough to encourage a new broadband competitor, said groups calling for open-access rules for part of the spectrum. FCC Chairman Kevin Martin, in an interview with USA Today published Tuesday, said he wants a "truly open broadband network" for the 700MHz spectrum scheduled to be auctioned by early next year. That would mean customers could attach any device to the network and download any application, Martin told the newspaper. Martin's proposal, reportedly to be applied to about a third of the 60MHz of spectrum to be auctioned, is similar to net neutrality rules that several consumer groups and Internet companies have championed for broadband networks. But groups calling for open access to the 700MHz spectrum want more than that. Groups like Public Knowledge, Consumers Union, and Free Press want the FCC to require winners of part of the spectrum to provide wholesale access to any wireless or broadband provider that wants to offer service on that spectrum. Rules that would allow customers to attach any device and download any application are a good first step, but what Martin seems to be proposing is "not open access," said Gigi Sohn, president of Public Knowledge. "Our definition of open access includes wholesale. You're not going to get competition in the broadband space unless you have wholesale as well." The FCC is expected to set rules for use of the 700MHz spectrum within weeks, and there's heavy debate in Washington, D.C., over what those rules should look like. Many observers say the 700MHz spectrum, now used by U.S. television stations for over-the-air broadcasts, is the ideal spectrum for long-range wireless broadband services. With no other large auctions of spectrum in sight, Public Knowledge and other members of the Open Internet Coalition say open access rules offer the best chance for U.S. customers to ever see a third broadband service that competes with large cable and telecom providers. But some wireless providers, think tanks, and lawmakers have questioned open access rules. On Monday, 38 members of the U.S. House of Representatives sent a letter to the FCC calling on the agency to reject open access rules. Such rules could hinder public safety communications on the spectrum, said the letter, signed by Representative Marsha Blackburn, a Tennessee Republican, plus 36 other Republicans and one Democrat. The 700MHz spectrum includes 60MHz to be auctioned to commercial users and another 24MHz set aside for public safety agencies, such as police and fire departments. One proposal before the FCC, from startup Frontline Wireless, would marry 10MHz of commercial spectrum to be auctioned with 12MHz of public safety spectrum for a network that would have both public safety and commercial users. Open access rules would dictate how auction winners manage their networks and could reduce the value of the spectrum, the letter said. "We urge you to ensure that the rules the FCC crafts to govern the 700MHz auction do not impose burdensome and unnecessary open access regulations on licensees," the letter said. But members of the Open Internet Coalition said consumers want more freedom than current wireless networks provide. While the wireless industry likes to trumpet competition among carriers, mobile devices are tied to one network, and customers often have to pay huge early termination fees, said Ben Scott, Washington policy director for Free Press, a media reform group.
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Open access advocates say an FCC plan for new spectrum doesn't go far enough to boost competition.
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The television industry scores an amendment to a bill that would have forced them to give up lots of valuable spectrum to emergency workers. The change all but guts the bill. Michael Grebb reports from Washington.
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On Thursday, the Federal Communications Commission will auction off what industry observers call the "sweet spot" of the wireless spectrum -- the 700-MHz block formerly occupied by television broadcasters. Among the bidders are some 214 companies, including Verizon, AT&T and, most famously, Google.
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FCC clears the way for more companies to offer the alternative form of Net access. The US Federal Communications Commission this week cleared the way for power companies to roll out broadband over power line
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Tech companies pushing for access to spectrum &quot;white spaces&quot; and for net neutrality and open access on broadband and wireless networks have an antiproperty agenda, said one critic on Wednesday.Open access and other conditions on the 700MHz spectrum currently being auctioned by the U.S. Federal Communications Commission (FCC)&#160;may be suppressing bids and limiting the uses winning bidders have for the spectrum, added Scott Cleland, founder of telecom analyst firm The Precursor Group, speaking at the U.S. Congressional Internet Caucus Advisory Committee&#39;s 2008 State of the &#39;Net Conference in Washington, D.C. Cleland voiced a contrarian view during a discussion of spectrum policy; other speakers called on the U.S. Congress and the FCC to open up more spectrum to unlicensed uses.Open access in the ongoing 700MHz auction at the FCC, widening fair-use rights under copyright, net neutrality, and white-spaces access to television spectrum are all part of a broad and hidden agenda pushed by some tech companies and civil liberties groups, said Cleland, whose company operates the anti-net-neutrality advocacy group NetCompetition.org.&quot;Everybody throws the word &#39;open&#39; around and says open is wonderful,&quot; he said. &quot;But &#39;open&#39; means communal. It means not owned.&quot;Other speakers suggested mobile networks aren&#39;t open enough. Mobile voice providers Verizon Wireless and AT&amp;T have embraced a version of open access in recent months, but they still limit innovative mobile applications, said Jason Devitt, founder of secretive startup Skydeck and cofounder of mobile-phone-application provider Vindigo.Verizon Wireless in November announced it would open its network this year to outside devices, but that doesn&#39;t help mobile application developers, Devitt said. Most of Verizon&#39;s customers will still get their handsets from Verizon, and developers will have to get the company&#39;s permission to include their applications on Verizon-sold phones, he said.&quot;If you&#39;re a developer of mobile applications, Verizon&#39;s announcement makes no difference,&quot; he said.Cleland blasted the FCC for including open-access requirements in about a third of the 62MHz of spectrum in the 700MHz band currently being auctioned, saying some of the requirements may have driven away bidders. In the 22MHz block of spectrum called the C block, the winning bidder must allow users to bring such devices&#160;as mobile phones from other carriers and allow outside applications to run on the network.The FCC&#39;s 700MHz auction began last Thursday, and after 16 rounds of bidding through Wednesday, the high bid for the C block was nearly $4.3 billion, just short of the reserve price of $4.6 billion set by the FCC. High bids for the complete auction totalled $10.8 billion, and the FCC had expected to raise at least $10 billion. The auction will likely continue for several days, depending on bidding action.But Cleland criticized the FCC for imposing conditions on the C block and the D block of spectrum, a 10MHz block that the FCC wants to pair with another 10MHz set aside for public safety. The winning bidder of the D block would be required to build a nationwide mobile and broadband network with the two pieces of spectrum, with the network shared by public safety agencies and commercial users.As of late Wednesday, the D block had received a high bid of $472 million, far short of the $1.3 billion reserve price demanded by the FCC. The FCC may have to re-auction the D block without some of the requirements, Cleland said.When the FCC sets several conditions on spectrum, &quot;the bidders have the freedom not to play,&quot; Cleland said. &quot;An auction is a party. You don&#39;t get people to come to your party if you make it not fun and not a happy place.&quot;Other speakers disagreed with Cleland. The FCC needs to push forward with a proposal that would open up the unused &quot;white spaces&quot; in the spectrum bands used by U.S. television broadcasters, said Michael Calabrese, director of the Spectrum Policy Program at think tank the New America Foundation.Opening up this unused spectrum, which allows the long-range transmission of signals, would allow companies to offer wireless broadband services, particularly in rural areas, Calabrese said.TV broadcasters have opposed unlicensed spectrum use in the white spaces, saying the technology to avoid existing signals is unproven. The FCC is currently testing white-space devices.