License holder Access Spectrum LLC said that the Federal Communications Commission has authorized the use of time division duplex (TDD) equipment within its upper 700 MHz A-Block spectrum.
Access Spectrum holds A-Block spectrum that covers two-thirds of the United States, covering most of the country’s midsection and southern coasts and borders. The authorization comes after a March 2013 field test in Vienna, Va. and additional lab testing to ensure that interference issues were addressed. Access Spectrum and TDD technology supplier Full Spectrum submitted the documentation for the approval process.
Access Spectrum also says on its website that LCC International and AT4 Wireless demonstrated the use of the spectrum with an off-the-shelf TDD product that used WiMax 802.16 connectivity.
“The FCC’s authorization for the use of TDD equipment marks an important milestone in the development of the Upper 700 MHz A Block,” said Michael Gottdenker, chairman and chief executive of Access Spectrum, in a statement. “This approval demonstrates that the equipment complies with the regulatory technical rules that apply to the A Block. The development of this equipment helps to illustrate the wide range and variety of technologies that can be deployed by technology companies, critical infrastructure enterprises, and government entities that are in need of wireless spectrum to deploy any number of cutting edge technologies – from machine to machine communications to smart grid applications, from hospital and health care connectivity to high-quality data processing.”
Full Spectrum’s CEO, Stewart Kantor, said that the company “welcome[s] the possibility of working with the growing number of innovative companies who are seeking greater access to available spectrum to develop and bring to market new products and services.” Full Spectrum develops private 4G networks.
The former television spectrum licensed by Access Spectrum sits between the C-Block licensed to Verizon Wireless, and the D-Block that will be used by the First Responder Network Authority, or FirstNet, for its nationwide public safety network. Among the potential uses for its spectrum in private industry, Access also notes on its website that “adding the A-Block to the public safety spectrum allocations will result in meaningful capacity increases, which will lead to more leasing revenues and / or capital and operating savings for this nationwide network.”
Other possible applications that the company suggests are “social and media platforms, automotive, financial transactions, oil and gas, smart grid/smart home, transportation, and telematics.”
