Tuesday, November 30, 2010

FCC Squeazing Every Last Mhz from TV Spectrum

The FCC took several more steps in its quest to free up more spectrum for mobile broadband, including reallocating spectrum from TV broadcasters, one of its most ambitious and contentious proposals. By a 5-0 vote, the commission approved a notice of proposed rulemaking that lays the groundwork for reallocating broadcast TV spectrum for wireless, including via incentive auctions. The rules will create a licensing framework for spectrum in the UHF and VHF bands and will allow for voluntary channel sharing.

Remember, the FCC is committed to finding 500 Mhz of new spectrum for wireless broadband use in the next decade, and so far, they've allocated only 25. This new decision is very creative, though. Here's what the FCC has planned so far:

Sharing a Channel
One of the new rules will permit broadcasters to share a single 6mhz channel, each splitting the responsibility for content and air-time. This could reduce the overall number of channels that broadcasters need if it could be found that programming can co-exist and not overlap.
Voluntary Auctions
Can't force the broadcasters to give it up? Entice them! While this provision still needs approval from congress, the FCC is proposing that broadcasters may profit from the sale of unused spectrum. If there is no benefit to sacrificing the bandwidth, why not hold on to it? But, if the FCC can show broadcasters that they can reduce their overhead and unlock a new source of cash-flow by releasing some unused or unnecessary spectrum, the game changes significantly.
Selling White-Space
Between every channel, the FCC has preserved whitespace as a buffer for innacurracies in signal broadcast. However, with newer and better technology, it's believed these tiny slivers may not be needed any more. So, the FCC will now consider using these small bits of spectrum for broadband use.
University Research
Finally, the FCC also decided to let Universities in on the game of trying to find creative new ways of recycling unused spectrum and repurposing it for broadband. Why not get the most creative minds involved in solving this monumental problem?

Labels: Broadband, Broadcasters, FCC, spectrum