Gov't agencies ask FCC to free up more spectrum: NTIA, DoJ comment on National Broadband Plan

Even the government is weighing in on the Federal Communications Commission’s plan to develop a National Broadband Plan. The Department of Justice and the National Telecommunications and Information Administration on Monday filed comments with the FCC encouraging the commission to free up more spectrum to encourage competition among broadband providers.
The comments are similar in that both agencies believe the nation’s best shot at a competitive marketplace for broadband lies in the wireless sector, but warn that a careful balance must be maintained so that wireless providers with wireline arms don’t end up with too much market power. Both agencies also questioned whether AT&T Mobility’s and Verizon Wireless’ LTE services will be marketed as wired Internet replacement services.
“It is premature to predict whether the wireless broadband firms will be able to discipline the behavior of the established wireline providers, but early developments are mildly encouraging,” The Department of Justice said in its filing. “Notably, the fact that some customers are willing to abandon the established wireline providers for a wireless carrier suggests that the two offerings may become part of a broader marketplace. Within the next several years, however, the limits of wireless broadband will be tested, including the actual delivered speeds, adequacy of in-building coverage, and ability of the networks to accommodate large numbers of users.”
NTIA proposed the FCC take a spectrum inventory and encouraged the agency to look at both commercial and government spectrum allocations, which is interesting because NTIA manages government spectrum use. NTIA also questioned whether LTE services would be offered as a replacement to wired Internet access.
“The commission also must keep in mind that the two largest U.S. wireless providers, Verizon and AT&T, also offer wireline services in major portions of the country, raising the question of whether these providers will market these services as replacements for wireline services, either within the region where they provide wireline services or at all,” NTIA noted.
The Department of Justice singled out wireless carriers beyond AT&T and Verizon Wireless that may bring more competition to the marketplace. “Although there may be other constraints on the ability of providers such as Clearwire, T-Mobile, Sprint, and new start-ups to develop and deploy effective wireless systems that could provide broadband services comparable to those of existing providers, the scarcity of spectrum is a fundamental obstacle that the commission should address.”
The FCC has just over a month to develop its broadband plan and present it to Congress on Feb. 17. The commission in December gave a sneak peak of the plan, which includes resolving AWS-3 and Wireless Communications Services spectrum proceedings to free up that spectrum, and studying how TV spectrum is being used.
CTIA and the Consumer Electronics Association have proposed that TV broadcasters should transition to use lower-power antennas to free up as much as 180 megahertz of additional spectrum.