Subject: [NEXTEL-1] United Press International: FCC considering 'open spectrum' action

From: Marcel <[email-masked]>
Date: Fri, 01 Nov 2002 12:10:09 -0500

http://www.upi.com/view.cfm?StoryID=20021031-032757-1752r

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FCC considering 'open spectrum' action

By Scott R. Burnell
UPI Science News

From the

Science & Technology

Desk

Published 10/31/2002 3:51 PM

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WASHINGTON, Oct. 31 (UPI) -- The Federal Communications Commission's decision to examine wider use of unlicensed or open bands of radio frequencies will help the country find more innovative ways to communicate wirelessly, telecommunications analysts said Thursday.

Kevin Werbach, a technology consultant and a former technology policy counsel at the agency, said FCC Chairman Michael Powell's call for more public discussion on open spectrum is remarkable.

"It's very heartening to hear (Powell) make these statements favorable to more unlicensed uses of spectrum," Werbach told United Press International. "The most exciting development is the chairman's willingness to take a broad look at spectrum policy, going back to its fundamental assumptions."

Michael Calabrese, director of the Public Assets Program at the New America Foundation in Washington, said Powell's views on unlicensed devices have changed significantly. The chairman recognizes promising new technologies will require reorganization of the nation's airwaves, Calabrese told UPI.

Powell, speaking Wednesday night at the University of Colorado at Boulder, said modern technology has shaken four major pillars of current policy:

-- unregulated radio interference will hobble communications;

-- spectrum is scarce;

-- government spectrum control is the only solution; and,

-- the public is best served when the government chooses the most appropriate use of that resource.

"While spectrum scarcity is a problem in some bands some of the time, the larger problem is spectrum access -- how to get to and use those many areas of the spectrum that are either underutilized or not used at all," Powell said Wednesday night.

At the moment, almost all radio frequencies are rigidly controlled by the FCC and its overseas counterparts, which give users very specific licenses to use a set band of spectrum.

The FCC created a Spectrum Policy Task Force in June to examine how more flexible regulations and technology advances could improve U.S. wireless communications. In his speech, Powell said the group's report soon will be made public and he intends to work with Capitol Hill on legislation related to spectrum policy.

The task force's re-examination of technology's ability to overcome interference merits further attention, Powell said, as does the idea of increased access to more radio frequencies. The commission will work on freeing up spectrum for both licensed and unlicensed uses, he said.

"It's enormously significant that he recognizes receivers should be required to accept more interference," Calabrese said.

"The proposals indicate the chairman and the FCC are willing to consider anything and to take into account how radically technology has changed since the policies were put into effect," Werbach told UPI. "Any change is going to take time; the speech suggests Chairman Powell thinks spectrum policy is extremely important ... and he's going to make it a high priority."

Current technologies defeat interference in several ways, such as ultra-wideband, an "underlay" approach that uses low-power signals to send data over a very large set of already occupied frequencies. The wireless computer data protocol 802.11, also called WiFi, is an example of how multiple devices in a home or business can send and receive data on the same frequencies by better coordinating their transmissions. New radio designs look to use software to alter the transmitting and receiving qualities of a single piece of hardware.

The changes aren't without some pitfalls, Calabrese said. Smart, frequency-sharing devices represent a contradiction to Powell's longstanding belief in exclusive private "property rights" to frequency bands. Progress might also stall if Powell tries to rely on inadequate FCC regulatory powers, he said.

"My fear would be that he doesn't trust Congress to (reach the same conclusions)," Calabrese said. "If he's afraid to let Congress make those decisions, we'll end up bogged down in half-measures."

Copyright © 2002 United Press International

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Copyright © 2002 United Press International. All rights reserved.