Sprint switches gears, backs FDD rather than TDD plan for 600 MHz auction

[ImmerStark]

The way the channels are being auctioned would almost necessitate TDD operation. There is no guarantee that there will be sufficient frequency separation between two available channels for FDD operation and in the event that only one channel is made available in an area it will be virtually useless.

[WiWavelength]

The way the channels are being auctioned would almost necessitate TDD operation. There is no guarantee that there will be sufficient frequency separation between two available channels for FDD operation and in the event that only one channel is made available in an area it will be virtually useless.

 

Not exactly.

 

Assuming this all comes to pass, UHF TV licensees will sufficiently participate in the reverse auction.  After the FCC has reacquired that spectrum, UHF TV channel allocations will be repacked -- meaning that any remaining broadcasters in the UHF TV channel 38-51 range may be forced to move to open UHF channels below that range.  And that will free up contiguous swaths of spectrum.

 

AJ

[S4GRU]

Not exactly.

 

Assuming this all comes to pass, UHF TV licensees will sufficiently participate in the reverse auction. After the FCC has reacquired that spectrum, UHF TV channel allocations will be repacked -- meaning that any remaining broadcasters in the UHF TV channel 38-51 range may be forced to move to open UHF channels below that range. And that will free up contiguous swaths of spectrum.

 

AJ

We are really short on details about what will happen to remaining license holders. I like what you've outlined as the best way to handle it. I hope it comes to pass that way as it would allow FDD to be used.

 

Robert via Nexus 5 using Tapatalk

 

[Nickel]

I was being facetious about the FCC thing and just arguing for it for fun. I don't really believe that. 

[Joski1624]

I know this is an unpopular position.  I must admit that I'm pretty dismayed that broadcast television may lose more spectrum (even if it's "volultary"-a peeve I have with national corporate station ownership) when they already got the 700-800Mhz chunk yanked with the switch to digital television only a couple years ago.  Over-the-air broadcast television is very cramped now in some geographical areas due to repackaging.  Acquiring public spectrum only to offload it for a huge profit shouldn't even be entertained anymore, and I think the FCC should come down on those who purposefully do this.  There's only so much RF spectrum-the most valuable not even being 1GHz wide.  What it's going to eventually boil down to is to continue finding ways to effectively use existing allocated spectrum.  Give licencees so much time to utilize their spectrum.  If they don't use it then they should have to forefeit it to another user who has use for it.  It may not be a lot, but I'm sure there is spectrum outside of broadcast TV being sat on and underutilized.  Why not have a push to repackage existing cell spectrum like terrestrial broadcast television had to do instead of giving limited RF spectrum out like candy to the highest bidder?  That's been something I've been pondering for years.  I have yet to hear of this being done except for Sprint's 800MHz allocation that got chopped.

[maximus1987/lou99]

I think OTA tv is an inefficient use of spectrum. Judge Judy, Maury, ricki lake reruns?

Each 6mhz channel can host 3 separate streams so you have fox, NBC, abc, wb, upn, PBS, CBS.

Reduce to 4x6mhz for TV and you can get 12 channels which is about how many I get on antenna. They won't be hd but access to hd is not a constitutional right.

[RCM]

Nor is 100mbps mobile data

[WiWavelength]

Each 6mhz channel can host 3 separate streams so you have fox, NBC, abc, wb, upn, PBS, CBS.

Reduce to 4x6mhz for TV and you can get 12 channels which is about how many I get on antenna.

 

That might be enough channels for one market, but it fails to account for adjacent channel interference within that market and co channel interference from surrounding markets.  In other words, the number of channels needs to be several times the max number of stations.

 

AJ

[maximus1987/lou99]

What about if ALL TV spectrum got turn into supplemental downlink and tv used LTE broadcast? Then TV stations could sell it in the future without ANOTHER rebanding.

 

Then interference would go away because you could put 5mhz LTE channels right next to each other right?

Edited January 18, 2014 by markw

[maxsilver]

I know this is an unpopular position. ... Acquiring public spectrum only to offload it for a huge profit shouldn't even be entertained anymore, and I think the FCC should come down on those who purposefully do this. ...  What it's going to eventually boil down to is to continue finding ways to effectively use existing allocated spectrum.  Give licencees so much time to utilize their spectrum.  If they don't use it then they should have to forefeit it to another user who has use for it. 

 

I don't know how unpopular that position is, and I agree with most of it.

 

If we're going to kick TV off spectrum again, I'd rather use it for something actually productive (such as making it unlicensed, so real people can actually use it)

 

I don't think we need any more cellular spectrum now, and won't for a while.  I'd love to see the FCC withhold all new spectrum for a while (2-6 years at least). This would force cellular providers to build bigger, denser networks (which is the real solution to supporting mobile broadband growth), and to actually use or sell off the spectrum they are holding now. 

 

Cellular companies already have a ridiculously wide array of bands at their disposal (700, Cellular 800, Sprint's 800, PCS, AWS, WCS, EBS/BRS). And that doesn't include the holding companies sitting on spectrum, or upcoming auctions companies refuse to participate in (Dish AWS holdings, or carriers turning down the PCS H Block auction).

 

I don't see any reason we can't make do with what's already released for quite a while, and I'd love to see cellular companies actually compete on sites and spacing, rather than simply outbidding each other.