Monday, September 12, 2011

Swapping the Spectrum

In his American Jobs Act speech to Congress last week, President Obama presented the idea of incentive auctions to generate money for paying down the deficit while freeing up space for wireless broadband on the broadcast spectrum.

An incentive auction, in this scenario, would be when a wireless broadband company pays a television station to give up their license to broadcast on a specific frequency. The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) would oversee the process at a cost.

The President says the plan would increase broadband availability while creating jobs. Supporters also believe that a large chunk of the television spectrum should be earmarked for wireless broadband use because of the increasing prevalence of smart phones and tablet computers. Those devices need space to operate. Opponents argue that incentive auctions would lead to fewer free-to-consumer TV stations and hurt the over-the-air market.

Both sides have a point. The need for wireless broadband access is only going to increase. If space is out there not being used – and realistically may not be used in the near future – why not make it useful? On the other hand, pay television companies have been increasing their rates to consumers for years. Content creators are finding new, less expensive ways to market directly to the general public. For the “cut the cord” movement to work, the broadcast spectrum has to accommodate the over-the-air signals.

And so the debate continues. What do you think is more valuable, broadband availability or space on the broadcast spectrum?

Labels: Broadband, FCC, spectrum