Unlicensed

On spectrum, we’ve been the most aggressive and successful Federal Communications Commission in history. With three high-band auctions, we’ve made available more spectrum for commercial use than was previously used by all mobile broadband providers in the United States combined. We’ve already finished repurposing low-band spectrum in the 600 MHz band for mobile broadband, which is now being used to provide 5G service coverage to more than 250 million American. And over the past couple of years, we’ve been primarily focused on mid-band spectrum.

The Federal Communications Commission adopted new rules for the 5.9 GHz band (5.850-5.925 GHz) to make new spectrum available for unlicensed uses, such as Wi-Fi, and improve automotive safety. Specifically, the new band plan designates the lower 45 megahertz (5.850-5.895 GHz) for unlicensed uses and the upper 30 megahertz (5.895-5.925 GHz) for enhanced automobile safety using Cellular Vehicle-toEverything (C-V2X) technology.

This forum has attracted participants from across Europe and around the world because we all understand 5G’s transformative potential to unlock innovation and economic growth. I’ve been asked to talk to you about what we are doing in the United States to seize the opportunities of 5G. So let’s get to it.

When we talk about spectrum policy innovation in 2020, dynamic spectrum sharing rests at the cutting edge. It’s become a powerful tool for squeezing the most value out of high-quality spectrum and meeting the growing demand for wireless services. Citizens Broadband Radio Service (CBRS)  may have been the Federal Communications Commission’s first major foray into dynamic sharing, but it was hardly our last.

At our November open meeting, the Federal Communications Commission will be considering the following items:

The centerpiece of my 2018 remarks was the Federal Communications Commission Commission’s new 5G FAST plan. And when I say new, it was really new—as in, five days old. I had announced the plan at a White House Summit the previous Friday. Two years on, as we approach the end of my fourth year as FCC Chairman, we can take stock of how we’ve done when it comes to executing that plan. 

Recently the US Court of Appeals for the DC Circuit ruled that the Federal Communications Commission doesn’t have to delay opening up the 6 Gigahertz spectrum band for unlicensed Wi-Fi. The court’s decision was in response to a request from public safety and utility organizations, as well as other groups such as AT&T, to grant a stay to the FCC order to open up the 6GHz band.

Federal Communications Commission Chairman Ajit Pai announced that the items below are tentatively on the agenda for the October Open Commission Meeting scheduled for Tuesday, October 27, 2020:

RED Technologies (RED) is now the white space database administrator for the database previously administered by Nominet UK (Nominet). This change was precipitated by a transfer of ownership and control of the white space database from Nominet to RED. This transfer of control will not affect the way existing or future white space equipment connects to the white space database. In addition, there will be no change to the public’s interaction with the database for querying the database or registering protected entity locations.

A Houston startup called Skylark Wireless is developing a new kind of internet service that relies on the unused frequencies normally associated with television stations. Known as TV white space technology, or TVWS, it’s seen as a real possibility to get high-speed data service to people in rural areas. While other companies are using TVWS to do rural broadband internet access, Skylark’s approach is unique.