LAS VEGAS, January 12, 2024 – Senior Counsel for the National Telecommunications and Information Administration and the Democratic and Republican lead counsel for the House Communications Technology Subcommittee spoke about their spectrum policy priorities at CES on Thursday.
The group touted the U.S. victory at the World Radiocommunication Conference in Dubai and lawmakers’ goals for spectrum auction powers for 2024.
world radio conference
“The 6 gigahertz (GHz) issue has been a top priority for the U.S. government,” he said ahead of the conference, which brings together representatives from around the world to coordinate spectrum use. phil murphySenior Advisor, NTIA.
The spectrum was set aside by the Federal Communications Commission in 2020 for unlicensed use in the US, but some countries, such as China, wanted some of the spectrum to be utilized for 5G mobile applications. said Murphy.
In the end, the U.S. delegation was able to Delivered in December: The conference’s decision set aside 700 megahertz (MHz) for mobile use, but left open the possibility that regulators would approve unauthorized use of the entire band.
It’s a victory for the American Wi-Fi industry: Wi-Fi Alliance announced It received official Wi-Fi 7 certification on Monday ahead of the tech conference. The new generation supports wider spectrum channels and multilink operation, both of which utilize his 1,200 MHz region of the 6 GHz band.
“We’re really excited about this result,” Murphy said. “We’re really looking forward to seeing 6 GHz move forward, not only here in the United States but in other parts of the world.”
auction authority
The Federal Communications Commission’s authority to auction and issue licenses for commercial use of the electromagnetic spectrum expired for the first time in March 2023. Technologies like Wi-Fi do not require such licenses to operate in reserved bands, but this is not an issue. Unauthorized use is prohibited, but it is critical to the ever-expanding 5G networks and wireless broadband.
“The Chairman’s first priority is to reauthorize the FCC’s spectrum auction authority, which expired in March.” kate o’connor, chief advisor to the Republican majority on the Communications and Technology Subcommittee. “There’s a lot going on behind the scenes, even if it’s not publicized.”
jennifer episonMurphy, chief legal counsel for the Democratic side of the subcommittee and NTIA counsel, agreed on the importance of this issue.
“I think it’s a priority for the administration to reauthorize the FCC’s spectrum auction authority,” he said. “The FCC probably has spectrum that it can auction right now, but it can’t because it doesn’t have the authority to do so.”
in House Oversight Hearing November, FCC Chairman jessica rosenworcel “There’s a lot of spectrum sitting in the FCC’s closet,” he said, citing 550MHz in the 12.7-13.25GHz band as spectrum that the FCC could auction “relatively soon.”
Comprehensive reauthorization efforts have since stalled in public. invoice cleared Approved by the House Energy and Commerce Committee in May, interim measures were taken to allow the committee to issue licenses purchased before they expired. signed into law During December.
“As the funding bill approaches, we’re looking at it and we hope to be able to get this started as soon as possible,” O’Connor said.
