Subject: [NEXTEL-1] Consumer Coalition Seeks 'License Exempt' Bandwidth

From: [email-masked]
Date: Fri, 26 Sep 2003 08:42:08 -0400

Consumer Coalition Seeks 'License Exempt' Bandwidth

Sep 24, 2003

A coalition of liberal-leaning consumer advocacy organizations is urging the FCC
to open more "license exempt" spectrum for citizen use, an action that many
believe would help bring affordable wireless broadband Internet to under-served
communities.

The coalition, led by the New America Foundation, Media Access Project and the
Benton Foundation, responded to FCC-proposed changes to the so-called "ITFS/MDS"
spectrum bands currently licensed for private use by educational organizations.

Some critics of the FCC's proposal argue that these bands are vastly underused,
and the FCC has allowed license holders to lease these airwaves to private firms.
The FCC's proposed changes would further reduce educational-use spectrum and
encourage the sale of spectrum licenses to private companies.

As an alternative, the coalition proposes that one half of the band be dedicated
to public unlicensed use for wireless broadband Internet services, like WiFi. The
coalition also recommends that spectrum equivalent to the current educational
allocation be preserved for educational uses, but opened for unlicensed sharing to
maximize citizen access.
The market value of spectrum at issue - all of it in the 2500-2690 MHz band - is
likely worth tens of billions of dollars. "To directly or indirectly give this
away to some of the largest corporations in America is a clear violation of both
democratic principles and the Communications Act," the coalition said in its
comments to the FCC. "Mobile telephone companies who want access to 3G spectrum
should pay for it at an open and competitive government auction. They should not
be able to purchase it at a severe discount through high-powered lobbying and
clever deals with educational institutions."
The coalition argues that the marketplace is also not the arbiter of all
democratic values. "Real estate developers might be willing to pay top dollar to
transform New York's Central Park into an office complex. But having a public park
may provide greater value to the public," the group said. "Similarly, although
incumbent licensees may want to entirely privatize the public airwaves, retaining
an unlicensed, public portion may serve the greater good."

The government has a compelling First Amendment obligation to minimize entry
barriers to free speech, which is the foundation of a democratic government, the
coalition told the FCC. "Use of the electromagnetic spectrum for speech is the
information age equivalent to the use of acoustic spectrum for speech. This is why
it comes under the banner of the First Amendment. Allowing a handful of companies
to take over this speech and erect substantial barriers to entry is not in the
public interest."

www.Telecomweb.com

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