[Federal Register Volume 69, Number 18 (Wednesday, January 28, 2004)]
[Notices]
[Pages 4118-4120]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 04-1755]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Telecommunications and Information Administration

Docket No. 040116021-4021-01


Rural Wireless Broadband Access in the 3650-3700 MHz Band

AGENCY: National Telecommunications and Information Administration, 
U.S. Department of Commerce.

ACTION: Notice of Inquiry.

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SUMMARY: The National Telecommunications and Information Administration 
(NTIA) invites interested parties to review and comment on the 
questions presented in this Notice to assist NTIA in developing 
recommendations to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) on the 
use of the 3650-3700 MHz band for unlicensed devices. NTIA's specific 
interest is to ensure the continued protection of operations of 
Government agencies in this band. In order to ensure that these Federal 
operations are not adversely affected, NTIA is seeking public comment 
to explore the merits of frequency and/or geographic avoidance 
technologies, and other interference-mitigation techniques, and to 
examine technical requirements to allow compatible unlicensed device 
usage in the 3650-3700 MHz band. NTIA believes that by making this band 
available with appropriate regulatory provisions, broadband wireless 
access would be facilitated in rural areas. NTIA supports the FCC in 
its efforts to introduce advanced communications to rural areas, and 
seeks to ensure that the interests of the Federal Government users of 
spectrum are adequately protected. NTIA has determined that it is 
important to examine the issues related to the use of unlicensed 
devices and wireless broadband, and to develop recommendations 
regarding specific regulations for the use of the 3650-3700 MHz band as 
a follow-on to the new spectrum allocated at 5 GHz for unlicensed 
broadband devices.\1\ Some initial conclusions about the 3650-3700 MHz 
band are discussed in NTIA comments in Additional Spectrum for 
Unlicensed Devices Below 900 MHZ and in the 3 GHz Band proceeding.\2\ 
Comments submitted in this proceeding will be posted on NTIA's website.
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    \1\ Revision of Parts 2 and 15 to Permit Unlicensed National 
Information Infrastructure (U-NII) Devices in the 5 GHz Band, ET 
Docket No. 03-122, Report and Order, FCC 03-287 (released, Nov. 12, 
2003).
    \2\ Additional Spectrum for Unlicensed Devices Below 900 MHz and 
in the 3 GHz Band, ET Doc. No. 02-380, Notice of Inquiry, 17 
F.C.C.R. 25632 (2002) (Additional Spectrum for Unlicensed Devices). 
See also, Spectrum for Unlicensed Devices, 68 Fed. Reg. 2730 (Jan. 
21, 2003).

DATES: Written comments and papers in response to this Notice are 
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requested to be submitted on or before February 27, 2004.

ADDRESSES: Submit an original and two copies of written comments to the 
Office of the Chief Counsel, National Telecommunications and 
Information Administration, U.S. Department of Commerce, 1401 
Constitution Avenue, N.W., Room 4713, Attention: Unlicensed Devices 
Proceeding, Washington, DC 20230. Paper submissions should include a 
three and one-half inch computer diskette in HTML, ASCII, Word, or 
WordPerfect format (please specify version). Diskettes should be 
labeled with the name and organizational affiliation of the filer, and 
the name of the word processing program used to create the document. 
Alternatively, comments and papers may be submitted electronically

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to [email protected]. Comments submitted via electronic mail 
also should be submitted in one or more of the formats specified above.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For questions about this Notice, 
contact: Charles Glass, National Telecommunications and Information 
Administration, U.S. Department of Commerce, 1401 Constitution Avenue, 
N.W., Room 4606, Washington, DC 20230, (202) 482-1896, or 
[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Background

    President Bush, in his Technology Agenda and at the 
Administration's economic summit in Waco, Texas, called for an 
aggressive expansion of broadband, recognizing the promise of high-
speed future communications.\3\ In addition to enhancing business 
efficiencies and broadening commercial opportunities, broadband holds 
the promise of expanding educational opportunities, improving health 
care, increasing government responsiveness to its citizens, and 
generally enhancing our global competitiveness. Thousands of new jobs 
could result from greater broadband deployment, both directly through 
network construction, and indirectly through industries related to 
advanced networks and services. Broadband represents an important 
potential source of growth and investment for the United States.
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    \3\ See ``Promoting Innovation and Competitiveness: President 
Bush's Technology Agenda,'' available at http://www.whitehouse.gov/infocus/technology/tech1.html.
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    The Administration supports technology-neutral solutions where 
feasible and supports the removal of unnecessary government impediments 
to competition and broadband deployment. In support of the 
Administration's policy, NTIA recently has taken steps to promote the 
expansion of broadband, for example, by spearheading an effort to bring 
the Defense Department and the U.S. technology industry together to 
permit devices using Wi-Fi technologies to co-exist with sensitive 
military radar systems in the 5 GHz frequency band. Within the scope of 
this proceeding, NTIA intends to facilitate advanced, low-cost wireless 
broadband deployment in rural areas.
    The Federal Communications Commission issued a Proposed Rule and 
Notice of Inquiry in December 2002 on use of spectrum below 900 MHz and 
in the 3650-3700 MHz band as new unlicensed spectrum bands.\4\ On May 
7, 2003, NTIA filed comments in response to the FCC's Notice of Inquiry 
in the Additional Spectrum for Unlicensed Devices proceeding commending 
the FCC for seeking to expand the options for unlicensed use of the 
3650-3700 MHz band and, particularly, for linking such expanded use to 
the adoption of new technologies for active-interference avoidance.\5\ 
There appear to be very significant benefits to the economy, 
businesses, consumers, and government agencies that can be gained by 
allowing unlicensed devices to operate in certain other bands at higher 
power levels than currently permitted by the FCC's Part 15 rules for 
use of the 2.4 and 5.8 GHz bands that are widely used for rural 
broadband applications. In particular, given the limited bandwidth 
currently available (50 MHz), the use of higher power usage in the 
3650-3700 MHz band could provide great benefit in the rural markets but 
would most likely have limited success in urban markets due to the lack 
of supportable competition due to interference given the typical 
channel width of 20 MHz.
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    \4\ See Additional Spectrum for Unlicensed Devices, supra note 
2.
    \5\ Comments of the National Telecommunications and Information 
Administration, ET Doc. No. 02-380, at 2-3 (May 7, 2003)(NTIA 
Comments), available at http://www.ntia.doc.gov/ntiahome/fccfilings/2003/et02-380comments_05072003.wpd.htm.
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    Because of the Federal Government uses of the 3650-3700 MHz band, 
however, NTIA must address the potential impact that the unlicensed 
devices could have on critical Federal systems. NTIA identified the 
3650-3700 MHz frequency band pursuant to the Omnibus Budget 
Reconciliation Act of 1993 (OBRA-93) for reallocation from Federal 
Government use to a mixed-use basis effective January 1999.\6\ Under 
the reallocation, the Federal Government has indefinitely retained 
systems and operations at three sites where full use of the 3500-3700 
MHz by the Department of the Navy is required at these sites on a 
primary basis. The locations of these sites are: St. Inigoes, MD 
(38 10' 00''N 76 23' 00''W); Pascagoula, 
MS (30 22' 00''N 88 29' 00''W); and 
Pensacola, FL (30 21' 28''N 87 16' 
26''W). Original agreement on the mixed use of this band required 
coordination within an 80 km radius of operation around the Federal 
Government sites in order to provide adequate protection from harmful 
interference.
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    \6\ See National Telecommunications and Information 
Administration, NTIA Special Publication 95-32, Spectrum 
Reallocation Final Report (Feb. 1995)(NTIA Final Report); see also 
Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1993, Pub.L.No. 103-66, Title 
VI,Sec. 6001, 107 Stat. 312, 379 (1993), codified at47 U.S.C. Sec. 
921 et seq. (amended the NTIA Organization Act to add a new part B).
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    In order to ensure that these Federal operations are not adversely 
affected, NTIA is seeking public comment to explore the merits of 
frequency and/or geographic avoidance technologies, and other 
interference-mitigation techniques, and to examine technical 
requirements to allow compatible unlicensed device usage in the 3650-
3700 MHz band.

II. Invitation to Comment

    In conjunction with providing information for consideration by 
NTIA, interested parties are requested to address the following 
questions and file comments that will assist NTIA in making a 
recommendation on the proper use of the 3650-3700 MHz band. In 
addressing the questions posed in this Notice, commenters should 
attempt to address both the costs and benefits of a given solution. In 
doing so, commenters should be mindful not only of the private costs 
and benefits of an action but also seek to identify any public effects. 
In gauging such costs and benefits, comments should be as specific as 
possible. Commenters may include any other issue that is relevant to 
the areas outlined below. Comments will be posted on NTIA's website at 
http://www.ntia.doc.gov.

A. Spectrum Regulatory and Policy Approaches

    1. What types of services are appropriate to be offered using the 
unlicensed devices operating in the band? What limitations or 
restrictions, if any, should be placed on the use of the band?
    2. Given the geographic limitations required to protect the Federal 
Government sites, can the 3650-3700 MHz band be used effectively for 
ubiquitous unlicensed operations?
    3. Given the apparent interest in higher power and perhaps more 
robust systems to provide effective broadband access, what type of 
licensing requirements are appropriate? Would it be practical to 
introduce some form of notification for certain types of unlicensed 
systems in order to reduce the potential for causing interference?
    4. Would there be a benefit in terms of limiting the potential for 
interference in this band by using both licensed and unlicensed 
approaches, perhaps each with different technical characteristics 
(e.g., licensing higher power devices with low power devices operating 
as unlicensed devices)?
    5. Is there a benefit in tying the use of the 3650-3700 MHz band to

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operations in another band? What band combinations would be 
appropriate? Are there specific technical requirements that would need 
to be employed (e.g., power, gain, antenna type or height)?
    6. Are there developments occurring outside the United States that 
should be taken into account?

B. Mitigation Measures

    1. What mitigation measures can be employed to enhance spectrum 
utilization while providing protection for the Federal Government 
sites?
    a. Should measures such as Dynamic Frequency Selection, be employed 
to maximize spectrum reuse and to ensure protection of the Federal 
Government sites? Would these same measures also assist in reducing 
interference between unlicensed devices?
    b. Can geographic mitigation measures, such as limiting devices 
sold in the region of the Federal Government sites, work given that the 
band may be used by unlicensed devices?
    c. Should mitigation measures such as location identification be 
required in the devices that would ensure the device does not operate 
co-channel with the Federal Government sites? How could this be 
accomplished?
    d. Would these same measures allow other services to operate in the 
band if they were similarly geographically limited?
    2. Discuss other mitigation measures that may be useful or 
necessary for unlicensed devices to operate in the 3650-3700 MHz band.

C. Technical Issues

    1. In the development of specific mitigation measures, it will be 
important to understand the typical deployment scenario for use by all 
devices, including wireless broadband devices, in this band. 
Specifically, discuss the following technical issues with regard to 
each mitigation measure.
    a. The maximum power to be used if the devices operate as licensed 
and/or unlicensed.
    b. The gain the devices employ if licensed or unlicensed.
    c. The density that would be expected from deployment of these 
devices, and, specifically, the kind of modeling scenario that should 
be used to capture this.
    d. The type of antenna technologies (e.g., sector or adaptive 
antennas) expected to be employed and their heights.
    2. What levels of mitigation can be expected from different 
mitigation approaches?
    3. More generally, are there particular technical approaches that 
should be used for this band to increase its utility to meet rural 
broadband needs?
    Please provide copies of studies, reports, opinions, research or 
other empirical data referenced in your responses.

    Dated: January 22, 2004.
Kathy D. Smith,
Chief Counsel, National Telecommunications and Information 
Administration.
[FR Doc. 04-1755 Filed 1-27-04; 8:45 am]
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