FCC commissioners initiated a proceeding to examine potential new rules that might spur greater use of the 4.9 GHz spectrum band currently dedicated to public safety.
Several FCC commissioners said less than 4% of potential licenses use the 4.9 GHz band, which the FCC designated for public-safety use in 2002 and has since been the subject of several policy revisions.
KEY TAKEAWAYS:
- FCC commissioners unanimously initiated a proceeding that might spur greater use of the 4.9 GHz spectrum band
- Currently the 4.9 GHz spectrum band is dedicated to public safety, including various spectrum-sharing schemes
- The possibility exists for redesignating of the airwaves for commercial use
“Our goals here are simple: to promote more productive use of the band, to foster the development of new technologies, and to spur investment. We believe that we will unleash the potential of this band with the proposals that we consider here—from aggregating channels into larger blocks to facilitate broadband use to opening the door to more spectrum sharing.”
“In light of the underutilization of this band by public safety for non-public-safety purposes and the relative progress of FirstNet, I would argue—and I know some of my colleagues agree with this—that it is time to redesignate this valuable spectrum for commercial use,” O’Rielly said. “Today’s notice provides the opportunity to contemplate whether this spectrum, which is located close approximately to the 5 GHz unlicensed band, should be allocated for unlicensed or licensed use.”
Original source: http://urgentcomm.com/fcc/fcc-commissioners-express-interest-redesignating-public-safety-49-ghz-band-commercial-use
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