CBRS spectrum comes into play with BEAD

Wireless internet service providers (WISPs) hit a homerun when federal officials clarified that areas covered by broadband running on Citizens Broadband Radio Service (CBRS) spectrum could be marked as served for purposes of BEAD. Many folks in the fiber broadband community are not familiar with wireless internet service and the rules regarding wireless spectrum. But CBRS spectrum has become a factor in the FCC’s national broadband map, and it is affecting the determination of BEAD-eligible locations. The first BEAD rules from the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) said that for wireless broadband, only service providers who owned their own licensed spectrum could apply for BEAD funds in unserved locations. But later, the NTIA clarified its rules and said that service providers who had access to general authorized access (GAA) CBRS spectrum could apply for BEAD funds in unserved locations. Previously, GAA CBRS spectrum had been considered as unlicensed. But after the rule change, it is considered as licensed-by-rule.