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Senators Call for Spectrum Inventory
from the we're-missing-one-spectrum dept
There's been a lot of talk over the years about the various studies and statistics used to measure broadband in the US. Very often the figures don't tell a completely accurate story, so there's been a push for the government to get better data as a part of the formation of a national broadband plan. It's clear, though, that wireless access will play a big part of the broadband future of the country, but it has to be handled a little differently. Wired networks can always have more capacity added, but wireless networks have the constraint of a finite amount of radio spectrum. A big part of regulators' work in enabling mobile broadband to blossom is in ensuring that spectrum is being used efficiently. This is part of the drive behind plans like the digital TV transition and the white spaces spectrum, which seek to wring more productivity out of the airwaves. But for more of these types of efforts to move forward, it's crucial to get a better handle on just how the entire spectrum is being used, so a couple of senators have introduced legislation that would have the FCC and NTIA undertake a "spectrum inventory" detailing the usage of spectrum between 300 MHz and 3.5 GHz. Hopefully this will make it clearer how much valuable spectrum is being mismanaged or hoarded, and open the door to some new licensing policies, like spectrum markets, or even just the opening of more spectrum to unlicensed use to take advantage of new technologies.
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mmm unlicensed
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Credit where credit is due
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You would have to think that this type of survey would be more in line with getting ready to auction off more space to raise money.
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Need Transparancy on What Spectrum Licensing Means
I am not against the LICENSING of spectrum, where the US government holds the spectrum in trust for the benefit of the American people. What I would be opposed to is the unspoken "land grab" of spectrum by private entities.
Also many people who seen to favor the "land grab" model do not seem to disclose the full implications of what this would mean. For example, would you now be required to license, for a fee, your currently free wifi router in your home?????
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I don't mind a review of spectrum, so long as it comes with some intelligent review and willingness to change the allocation and auction process. Not holding my breath . . .
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