The innovative spectrum sharing framework connecting Americans across the country

Americans increasingly rely on the radio spectrum for much of their daily lives. From texting friends to car navigation these airwaves play an invisible but central role. Much like other important resources, spectrum access is finite. Demand continues to grow. Federal spectrum policy experts recognize this – and have come up with creative new ways to allow greater spectrum access by sharing this vital resource. One innovative approach is the Citizens Broadband Radio Service (CBRS), which allows for dynamic spectrum sharing between the Department of Defense (DoD)and commercial spectrum users.  The DoD users have protected, and prioritized use of the spectrum. When the government isn’t using the airwaves, companies and the public can gain access through a tiered licensing arrangement. This means the DoD can use the same spectrum for its critical missions while companies can use it for 5G and high-speed Internet deployment. Research from the Institute for Telecommunication Sciences (ITS) finds the following about CBRS deployments:

• About 45 percent of all active devices were deployed in counties where use of the spectrum is shared with DoD, known as Dynamic Protection Areas (DPA). By the end of the reporting period, there were 128,351 active devices in DPA-impacted counties with a total population of 232,348,897 residents;
• Use of the General Authorized Access (GAA) tier, which provides lower-costs to the spectrum, dominates the band. Four out of five active devices were GAA-only, which is the license tier that must accept interference from licensed and federal users;
• More than 70 percent of all active devices are deployed in rural census blocks, showing the band is playing a significant role in expanding rural wireless connectivity.