Unlicensed Allocation Works Against FCC Goals for TV White Spaces, McDowell Says
FCC Commissioner Robert McDowell opposes any move to set aside a contiguous swath of spectrum within the 700 MHz band for unlicensed use, he said Monday in a speech to the Global Forum in Brussels. McDowell said establishing a separate unlicensed allocation in the TV band would work against efforts to make the TV white spaces available as a kind of super Wi-Fi. McDowell has been a strong advocate of making the white spaces available as quickly as possible (CD Jan 28 p2). The FCC approved its original white spaces order three years ago.
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"You may know that the U.S. Congress is currently debating the merits of further consolidating the television channels in order to identify additional spectrum for auction,” McDowell said. “As part of this discussion, some have suggested that Congress or the FCC should set aside a large contiguous swath of spectrum within the 700 MHz Band for exclusive unlicensed use. I respectfully disagree with this approach.”
Some House Democrats support a move to set aside part of the TV band for unlicensed use, rather than allowing its sale through a voluntary incentive auction. House Republicans, in general, oppose this move. The unlicensed spectrum question is among those being debated by members of House Commerce Committee as they try to work out the details on spectrum legislation.
McDowell warned that a set aside would be “premature” at this time. “The timeline for identifying, auctioning and ultimately clearing additional licensed spectrum in the 700 MHz Band is murky at best, let alone that for setting aside and reserving a given amount of channels for unlicensed use,” he said. “At this early stage, it is not apparent that we should stop the progress well underway in the white spaces arena to create a solution for a problem -- an alleged shortage of unlicensed spectrum in the 700 MHz Band -- that may never exist."
Setting aside spectrum for unlicensed use would work against a key FCC goal of maximizing spectrum efficiency, McDowell said. “Put another way, a contiguous swath of spectrum would be clearly defined, exclusive and easily transferable -- everything the white spaces are not,” he said. “Given today’s unprecedented budget deficits, I question whether the U.S. can afford not to auction any and all spectrum recovered in this band.”
McDowell also warned that indentifying 500 MHz of “quality spectrum” to be reallocated for wireless broadband will be “challenging, at best.” “Even if we could meet that challenge today, almost ten years would pass by before the FCC could write proposed auction rules and band plans, analyze public comment, adopt rules, hold an auction, collect the proceeds, clear the bands, and watch carriers build out and turn on the networks for their customers,” he said.