International Bureau to Move Forward on MSS and WCS Issues in Next 6 Months, says Bureau Chief
FCC International Bureau Chief Mindel De La Torre expects the bureau to move forward on several spectrum related issues in the coming months, she said at the Washington Space Business Roundtable in Washington Thursday. Broadband, as in the rest of the commission, is the focus for the bureau, and two items recommended in the National Broadband Plan will be acted on relatively quickly, she said.
The International and Wireless bureaus and Office of Technology will move on increasing flexibility in the licensing of terrestrial users of mobile satellite services (MSS) spectrum as part of the broadband plan within the next six months, said De La Torre. An FCC timetable for action on broadband plan recommendations also released Thursday said the issue would be taken up through a rulemaking notice in the third quarter. (See separate story in this issue.) The bureaus will be working together to make sure the spectrum is being used as well as it can be, De La Torre said. She said the recent court decision on Comcast v. FCC that has thrown the commission’s role in regulating the Internet into question wouldn’t have a significant effect on how the bureau moves forward on the issue.
De La Torre also expects the same bureaus to release a decision soon on new rules for the wireless communications services band, she said. The FCC schedule said an order on the spectrum will be out by the end of June. The new rules are expected to open up the spectrum for use by terrestrial wireless providers and the bureaus released a public notice on Friday. The fight over the WCS spectrum between Sirius XM, which says broadband providers could create interference with its services, and WCS licensees has been going on for several years but recently received new attention as the commission began looking for ways to increase spectrum availability for broadband providers.
Innovative platforms will play an important role in deploying broadband, “the most significant infrastructure opportunity of the 21st century,” and satellite has a role to play in bringing connectivity out to all areas, De La Torre said. Outside of the broadband plan, the bureau will be releasing two interference reports on 17/24 GHz spectrum, known as the reverse band, one on satellite interference and another on Earth interference, she said. For the long term, the bureau will look to modernize its procedures, though De La Torre didn’t go into specifics. She asked for industry suggestions on how to improve the bureau’s processes to help the industry remain at the front of satellite communications business.