Information
The Federal Communications Fee has unanimously accepted an early step in direction of bringing unused 5G-grade spectrum to market
By: Brad Randall, Broadband Communities
New proposed guidelines accepted by the Federal Communications Fee (FCC) signify step one in direction of bringing a slate of unused 5G-grade spectrum licenses to the market.
The proposed guidelines, accepted unanimously by FCC commissioners, will replace guidelines round AWS-3 spectrum licenses, the FCC introduced Thursday.
In keeping with the FCC, the AWS-3 band refers to spectrum between 1695-1710 MHz, 1755-1780 MHz, and 2155-2180 MHz.
Round 200 licenses for AWS-3 spectrum have been returned to the FCC’s stock following a 2014 public sale.
“Certain profitable bidders defaulted on their cost obligations,” the FCC’s press launch acknowledged. “In consequence, roughly 200 licenses have been returned to the FCC’s stock.”
Moreover, proceeds from a brand new public sale will fund the FCC’s rip and change program, the discharge defined.
The rip and change program, identified formally as the Safe and Trusted Communications Networks Reimbursement Program, goals to “take away untrustworthy know-how” from communications networks in the US.
FCC Chairman Brendan Carr stated the motion was “important to selling our nationwide safety.”
In an announcement on the matter, printed on the FCC’s web site, Carr stated failing to shut a funding hole within the FCC’s rip and change program “would have left America’s networks needlessly uncovered to safety dangers.”
‘Time for the FCC to get again to auctioning spectrum’
Carr’s assertion additionally celebrated the vote, saying the time had come for the FCC to public sale spectrum as soon as once more.
“It’s time that we release airwaves for 5G and different next-gen companies,” Carr’s assertion learn. “After all, conducting auctions on the FCC has been a little bit of a problem in recent times as a result of the FCC’s normal spectrum public sale authority lapsed again in 2023.”
He continued.
“However late final yr, Congress got here collectively and on a bipartisan foundation licensed the FCC to public sale our stock of AWS-3 spectrum,” Carr acknowledged. “This was a superb step ahead, and I need to commend Chairwoman (Jessica) Rosenworcel and her management group for shifting shortly to arrange a doc that enables the FCC to conduct this public sale.”
FCC Commissioner Geoffrey Starks additionally issued an announcement, thanking Carr and fellow FCC Commissioner Anna M. Gomez for approving language that may discover whether or not or not a precedence window for tribal nations may very well be leveraged to spice up connectivity on tribal lands.
“Whereas there are authorized and procedural points at play, I’m glad that we’ll be constructing a public report,” Starks acknowledged. “I recognize the essential engagement from the Navajo Nation and different advocates that introduced this subject into focus.”
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