Google Proposes More Safeguards for White Spaces Incumbents

Implementing Google’s plan would “shift the discussion of white spaces to a more constructive tone, on the merits,” Rick Whitt, Google’s Washington telecom and media counsel, told reporters Monday. “The combination of spectrum sensing, geolocation, beacons, and the safe harbor concept, should provide more than enough safeguards for the FCC to move forward expeditiously to open up the white spaces.” Whitt said broadcasters use only about 5 percent of broadcast spectrum. The enhancements “will eliminate any remaining legitimate concerns about the merits of using the white space for unlicensed personal/portable devices,” he said.

The Google proposal, similar to Motorola’s, would bar devices from using the white spaces unless they receive an “all clear” signal for a channel, “either directly from a database of licensed transmitters in that area, or from a geo-located device with access to that database.” Also like Motorola, Google proposes that wireless microphones use a beacon sending a warning that the spectrum is occupied to protect those devices from interferences.

In a further protection, Google recommends that the FCC create a “safe harbor” for wireless microphones in channels 36-38. “No TV white space device would be permitted to transmit in these channels,” the company said. “This will also protect medical telemetry devices and radio astronomy services, which are licensed to use channel 37.”

As spectrum sensing proves its value the commission may no longer need to require other protections for white spaces incumbents, Whitt said. “Spectrum sensing capabilities should be more than adequate,” he said. “We've always thought that. Our engineers in Mountain View are convinced of that.” Google saw a need for a “reasonable compromise” to override objections by broadcasters and wireless microphone makers. “We want everybody to be happy with this process,” he said. “We thought it was time to inject some of these ideas into the proceeding.”

Google is active in high-tech groups promoting use of the white spaces by personal/portable devices, but wanted to spell out its vision, Whitt said. “We all have different ideas about how to use it,” he said. “Some of this could be using a mesh-network approach or a pure peer-to-peer approach. Others could use more of a hybrid approach… All have a common theme, which is that this is a large amount of untapped spectrum and you've got people in Silicon Valley and entrepreneurs and innovators just itching to find ways to use it.”

A network using the white spaces could be very important to rolling out wireless broadband in rural America, Whitt said. “Because the propagation characteristics of this spectrum are so unique, for the first time you could find a way to essentially blanket an entire rural area with more than adequate bandwidth,” he said: “We think this notion of using it for wireless broadband is probably the single best use for it.”

Google will have more to say on the company’s role in the 700 MHz auction after anti-collusion restrictions expire April 3, Whitt said. Google bid for the C-block, but dropped out of the auction after triggering requirements that the C-block licensee follow open-access rules.

The Association for Maximum Service TV said Google’s plan offers “nothing new” and merely recites “the same laundry list” of protections already before the commission. “Google’s supposed ‘new plan’ is understandable given the repeated failure of spectrum sensing technologies during the most recent round of FCC lab testing,” the group said. “We are happy Google recognizes that relying on sensing will not protect consumers from interference to their new DTV sets and government subsidized converter boxes. Hopefully, this will put an end to the current ’sensing’ approach advocated by Microsoft and others.”

Harold Feld, senior vice president at the Media Access Project, said geolocation and a database would add no real protections while imposing extra costs for companies using the white spaces. “The many wireless ISPs that brought broadband back to devastated communities after Hurricanes Katrina and Rita could not have done so if they needed to receive permission from some destroyed beacon,” Feld said. “It is regrettable that Google has decided to add weight to the unproven claims of wireless manufacturers with a proposal that will impose real costs on community wireless networks and other providers of broadband to the poorest communities.”