WASHINGTON-The Federal Communications Commission currently is considering how much mobile satellite service operators will have to pay to relocate incumbents in the 2 GHz band.
MSS operators, particularly ICO Global Communications Services Inc., would like to offer services using the 2 GHz band. The problem is users in that band-including TV broadcasters and microwave fixed wireless operators-might have to be moved to prevent interference.
ICO has said it is against relocation payments. “We would like to pay as little as possible to enter this spectrum. The traditional approach was to pay nothing. We would discourage relocation [payments],” said Francis Coleman, director of regulatory affairs for ICO North America.
There also is concern that if the United States requires payment, other countries will follow suit. Instead of paying for relocation, ICO is working with the FCC to minimize transition costs. ICO believes that since it will be the first to move, it should have the opportunity to work on a solution.
Part of this solution would require the FCC to adopt a first-come-first-served band plan for the 2 GHz band. This is one of four options the FCC proposed earlier this year. There are nine applicants for spectrum in the 2 GHz band and there isn’t spectrum for everyone. Other countries do not want to be subject to a solution designed by ICO.
Other options include splitting the band up into equal parts; a flexible band approach, which leaves spectrum for the applicants that successfully deploy systems; and an auction approach if an agreement cannot be reached on one of the other options. ICO only supports the first-come-first-served option.
The relocation proceeding is tied to the service rules or band plan proceeding, but the record has been closed on the relocation proceeding for some time. For this reason, the FCC is hopeful incumbents will engage in the band plan process.
The National Association of Broadcasters, for its part, bowed out of the band plan process. “We are obviously pretty involved in the relocation issue. We do not have comment on the rather specific [service rules]. Our issues go to compensation which are not part of this proceeding,” said Kelly Williams, NAB director of engineering.
The broadcasters use the 2 GHz spectrum for satellite news gathering trucks, but there has been some talk that those operations would need to move anyway as part of the transition to digital TV.
The Fixed Wireless Communications Coalition filed comments in the band plan proceeding. The FWCC urged the FCC, if it uses 2 GHz for MSS, to develop sharing and coordination rules that adequately protect fixed service operation and expansion.
