FCC Not Formally Considering 2 GHz Spectrum, Users Say
As the FCC assesses spectrum issues, mobile satellite services (MSS) providers using the 2 GHz band have faced attack from wireless companies that say development in the band has been too slow. MSS providers say they've felt more pressure from their wireless competitors than from the commission, and there’s no formal review of their use of the spectrum.
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The MSS/ancillary terrestrial component “industry is set up to be part of solution,” Chris Doherty, ICO Global Communications’s vice president of public and investor relations at, said in reference the commission’s broadband plan. When the FCC decided to give the spectrum to the MSS companies rather than auction it to wireless companies, the commission “said they want to see advanced services in the band,” he said. “These mobile satellites have been designed to deliver more commercial services and have the opportunity to offer unique products. The FCC envisioned this to be part of the solution in rural areas.”
Still, skeptics say the industry simply can’t develop after ample opportunity and the spectrum could be put to better use. “The FCC has bent over backward to make ATC happen, but it hasn’t,” said consultant Tim Farrar. “The question is going to be, is it ever going to happen? What can [the FCC] do to make sure the spectrum is put to use. It is about the amount of revenue that terrestrial wireless service can generate from the equivalent amount of spectrum.”
If the MSS/ATC companies decide that the spectrum is worth more than the revenue it produces, that could hasten decisions to sell it, Farrar said. TerreStar recently signed a deal with AT&T for a service similar to what the companies hope to achieve with ATC. The service, which will switch from AT&T’s cellular service to satellite service when a user is out of range of cell towers, probably will be watched close to see whether the business model is workable, he said.
ICO and TerreStar, the two main users of the 2 GHz band, said a great deal of money has been invested in ATC even without a fully functional terrestrial component. The MSS players in the 2 GHz band said the ATC is well on its way to deployment and already represents a significant investment in service that will complement the recommendations of the commission’s National Broadband Plan due in February.
TerreStar responded in November to criticism by MetroPCS and Sprint Nextel that the 2 GHz band licensees weren’t using their spectrum assignments properly. TerreStar called claims that it intended to provide terrestrial-only service “demonstrably false” (CD Nov. 17 p4).
Despite the FCC’s talk about an urgent need for spectrum and the push from wireless providers, any reallocation of the satellite spectrum is far off, said Doug Brandon, TerreStar’s general counsel. The commission “has not really teed up satellite spectrum as a candidate for rededication,” he said. “It would be fair to say we would be open to having them look at all spectrum to see who’s using what. We can withstand that scrutiny. But the FCC hasn’t publicly or privately said they are thinking of taking the spectrum away.”