A Cato Institute study argues that while property rights for spec...
A Cato Institute study argues that while property rights for spectrum has emerged as a key concept, defining these rights is much more difficult than many would imagine. “Property rights in spectrum cannot operate identically to their real property…
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counterparts,” the report said. “Even though the merits of the case for property-like rights in spectrum are beyond dispute, the details about how such a regime would work must still be defined.” The Cato study was written by former Office of Engineering & Technology Chief Dale Hatfield and Phil Weiser, both at the U. of Colo. Weiser told us the paper comes as spectrum reform gets more attention at the FCC and elsewhere. “Enforcement of property rights in spectrum is a very different challenge than enforcing property rights in land,” he said: “If the real property model is used in spectrum there is a substantial risk that the system could be abused and that unintended consequences could arise.” The paper warns in particular against the danger posed by the spectrum equivalent of patent trolls, who buy up patent rights to game the system. “Patent trolls buy up patent rights… to exclude others from the use of an invention, knowing that other firms are using the invention unaware of the patent or believing it will not be enforced,” the paper said: “Then, without ever producing a product, the patent troll invokes its patent rights.”