Paper: Direct-to-Device Raises Numerous Spectrum Use Challenges
Mobile operators may be unsure about dedicating large amounts of unimpaired terrestrial spectrum for direct-to-device service on a multi-region basis, or even near cities, Summit Ridge Group's Armand Musey and consultant Tim Farrar wrote in a white paper Monday. They…
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said using terrestrial spectrum for D2D will spur patchwork coverage and restricted spectrum access across a limited number of countries. While use of mobile satellite service (MSS) spectrum provides wider coverage, access for new entrants to MSS spectrum comes with its own challenges from incumbent use in some allocations, they said. Moreover, spectrum sharing would be disruptive to those MSS incumbent users. D2D devices like smartphones, with their small, omnidirectional antennas, might necessitate what is essentially band splitting to avoid operating in the same bands in the same geography with one another, they said. But further band splitting becomes impractical as the number of D2D-connected devices grows, and incumbent spectrum gets more heavily used, they said. The three primary MSS bands possibly available to new D2D providers -- L, 2 GHz and big low earth orbit -- are licensed to existing satellite operators that serve millions of MSS devices globally, they said. Commercial agreements between D2D providers and MSS operators are the best way of guaranteeing that critical applications are protected. The report was commissioned by Globalstar, which has an MSS partnership with Apple for provision of D2D service to iPhones.