First Television White Spaces Database and device

The Federal Communications Commission issued a Public Notice announcing that the Office of Engineering and Technology (OET) has approved Spectrum Bridge’s television white spaces database system, which may provide service to devices beginning January 26, 2012.

OET has also approved a device by Koos Technical Services (KTS) as the first product allowed to operate on an unlicensed basis on unused frequencies in the TV bands. The KTS device will operate in conjunction with the Spectrum Bridge TV band database. The new KTS TV bands device is designed and approved for fixed operations that serve any broadband data applications. The device will contact the Spectrum Bridge database to identify channels that are available for operation at its location and can provide high-speed Internet connectivity.

The approval granted by OET allows Spectrum Bridge to commence operational service to new devices that can take advantage of the TV spectrum to provide service over greater ranges than those of Wi-Fi devices operating on higher frequencies.

Initial operation under this approval will be limited to Wilmington, NC and the surrounding area and will expand nationwide pending completion and activation of the Commission’s facilities for processing requests for protection of unlicensed wireless microphone at event venues. Parties in the Wilmington area that wish to register wireless microphones for event venues during this period of limited operation must send a request to OET by e-mail.