Showing posts with label FCC rules. Show all posts
Showing posts with label FCC rules. Show all posts

Tuesday, March 8, 2011

Announcing Spectrum Bridge's Wireless Microphone Frequency Finder App

Today, Spectrum Bridge announced the release of our Wireless Microphone Frequency Locator app, available in the iPhone app store. This app allows users to quickly locate exclusively reserved and available TV band frequencies for unlicensed wireless microphone use anywhere in the country.

The FCC’s recently adopted rules accommodating the unlicensed operation of wireless microphones in the TV bands recognizes the importance of interference free transmission in venues across the country for performances, events and entertainment. The Wireless Microphone Frequency Locator app mitigates potential interference between wireless microphones and television bands devices in operation by identifying available TV channels for use by microphones based on a user’s location.

In order to accommodate the unlicensed part 15 wireless microphones operating in the newly released TV White Spaces bands, the FCC designated two unoccupied TV channels in all areas of the country specifically for wireless microphone use. In addition to these two channels, the app also identifies channels that will not be used by TV bands devices according to the white spaces rules, and are available for use by unlicensed wireless microphones. Due to the fact that available TV channels vary by location and are subject to change, this app provides users with up-to-date wireless microphone frequency availability for any U.S. location.

To learn more about wireless microphone use in TV White Spaces bands, visit our website here, or to search for available white spaces in your area, visit www.showmywhitespace.com.

Wednesday, January 7, 2009

Leasing Lessons Learned, part 1 of 2

By: Stephen E. Coran, Attorney, Rini Coran, PC
Part 1 of 2

In 2003, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) adopted rules to promote development of “secondary markets” in spectrum. In addition to adding clarity to policies that historically had evolved through court cases and regulatory proceedings, the FCC expanded the scope of its leasing rules, established two different leasing categories designed to place regulatory and operational compliance obligations on the appropriate party and streamlined the process for approving leasing arrangements.

In the past five years, licensees and spectrum users have engaged in thousands of transactions to promote increased commercial use of spectrum. Companies such as Clearwire and Sprint Nextel, which recently combined their 2.5 GHz spectrum assets, have made extensive use of the FCC’s leasing rules to create a nationwide footprint for WiMax services. Other companies such as FiberTower and IDT have successfully marketed their microwave spectrum for backhaul to support mobile and fixed wireless businesses. And the major wireless carriers, such as Verizon Wireless, AT&T and T-Mobile, have entered into dozens of such arrangements as well.

Among other recent trends, major carriers are beginning to lease spectrum in rural areas to “partners,” who are willing to build the leased spectrum using the major carrier’s technology and to comply with strict service quality requirements, so that incoming customers will have the same high-quality experience when traveling into rural areas as they receive in their urban home markets. These arrangements enable major carriers to focus their own capital spending on their core metro area markets, while presenting to customers a virtual footprint that extends far into the countryside.

More and more, the secondary market appears to be headed in the direction of licensees using the lease process to improve their customers’ experience, and thereby reduce churn, without having to make long-term commitments. Lease arrangements for three to five years enable carriers to address their needs for the foreseeable future without being locked into obligations that may or may not be appropriate in meeting their long-term goals. Short-term arrangements may also provide an easy exit for the lessee, who can meet service obligations, create value and then return the spectrum and monetize its investment...