14 DAY TRIAL // The USA's Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has recently announced plans to make additional 90 MHz of spectrum available for mobile broadband through accessing underused mobile satellite service (MSS) bands. The move follows the announcement regarding the National Broadband Plan, which was presented to the Congress back in March, and which outlined a comprehensive strategy aimed at making 500 MHz of spectrum available for use in wireless broadband services by 2020.
The newly created Spectrum Task Force should be in charge with the strategy, as it was appointed to do so by Chairman Julius Genachowski. According to Ruth Milkman, Co-Chair of the Task Force, the entity has already started the execution of the Commission's spectrum agenda, which includes the spectrum initiatives outlined in the National Broadband Plan. “Job number one is to make more spectrum available for flexible use, including terrestrial mobile broadband,” Milkman stated.
The FCC has already made important steps to put the spectrum plans into action. Among these steps, we can count the approval of the Harbinger-SkyTerra transaction, which occurred shortly after the broadband plan was released. Through this transaction, Harbinger is enabled to invest billions of dollars in the building of a 4G wireless network that would include the MSS bands. The Commission made 25MHz of spectrum available for mobile broadband back in May, when it approved the WCS-SDARS Order.
The Spectrum Task Force aims at removing policies that currently block the flexible use of terrestrial mobile wireless service, and expects this move to provide an opportunity to enable the delivery of mobile broadband services, while the market-wide MSS capability would be retained for public safety, rural services, and the federal government.
“This initiative is an opportunity to make additional spectrum available for mobile broadband by promoting greater spectrum efficiency and flexibility,” said Julie Knapp, Co-Chair of the Task Force. “The Spectrum Task Force remains firmly committed to maintaining robust mobile satellite capability that serves important needs like disaster recovery and rural access. I am confident that we can achieve all of these goals and create a win-win solution.”