FCC to Auction 65 MHz of Shared Spectrum for 4G

The Federal Communications has moved to free up about 65 MHz of Spectrum on a shared basis for use by Long Term Evolution 4G networks, and the key element might be the face that the spectrum to be put up for auction using "flexible use" rules for the AWS-3 band, which includes the 1695-1710 MHz, 1755-1780 MHz, and 2155-2180 MHz bands. 



The novelty here is that the licenses will not necessarily be sold on an “exclusive basis.” The new band, called Advanced Wireless Services-3 (AWS-3), would be the first shared band between commercial networks and government systems.



That way of allocating spectrum is quite new, as in the past all spectrum has been awarded either on an exclusive basis, or, in the case of Wi-Fi, on an open basis with no interference protection.



The new mode of sharing will likely allow licensees and others to share a given block of spectrum, with interference protections.



That's new.