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CONTENTS 1. ExecutiveSummary.......................................................................................................................................32. Introduction..................................................................................................................................................4
2.1TheMobileMiracle.......................................................................................................................................4
2.2WhyItMustbeNurtured...............................................................................................................................5
3.SpectrumforMobileBroadband....................................................................................................................73.1.SpectrumDemand.........................................................................................................................................7
3.2 SpectrumRequirements.............................................................................................................................16
3.3 TakeAways.................................................................................................................................................21
4. SpectrumAnimatingPrinciples.....................................................................................................................274.1 Wellconceivedspectrumstrategiesarevital.............................................................................................27
4.2 Marketorientedassignmentapproachesworkspectrumcapsshouldbedisfavored............................40
4.3 Thereisnotimetolosespectrumallocationscantakeyearstoeffectuate...........................................44
5. ClosingConsiderations..................................................................................................................................466. Appendices..................................................................................................................................................47
6.1 Abbreviations..............................................................................................................................................47
6.2 SelectedReferences....................................................................................................................................49
7. Acknowledgements......................................................................................................................................50
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1. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
Mobile broadband in the Americas is in a delicate state. On the one hand, the growth in
subscribershiphasbeenphenomenal a mobilemiracle,asthe ITUcharacterized it in2008,
when mobile broadband subscriptions first exceeded fixed broadband subscriptions globally.
Thefeaturesandcapabilitiesoftodaysmobilebroadbandnetworks,devicesandservicesare
astounding,withthepromiseoffutureenhancementsevenmoreexciting.
On the other hand, the mobile broadband stands at a potentially perilous time. Today the
industry lacks sufficient incremental supply of one of its essential raw materials spectrum.
Based on a review of recent forecasts, one can reasonably draw the conclusion that mobile
broadbandnetworkswillhitcapacityshortagesbythemiddleofthedecadeunlessstepsaretakentosecuretheadditionalspectrumneeded.
Such steps need to be taken today to avoid these risks. Helpfully, the industry has a long
history of driving innovation in radio access technologies, from EDGE through HSPA to LTE,
allowingittoexploitspectrumassetsasintensivelyaspossible. Inparallel,theindustryalsohas
investedbillions inbuilding cellsites toenhancenetworkcoverageandcapacity. Suchsteps
willcontinuetobeneeded,andthereisnoindicationofdeploymentslowing.
Atthesametime,additionalspectrumformobilebroadbandisvital. Countriesmustbeginnow
to plan for the future, in order to preserve the promise of themobilemiracle. Historically,
spectrumallocationscantakeatleast5years,andoftenlonger,toeffectuate.
4G
Americas
offers
the
following
guideposts
to
aid
stakeholders
in
the
region
in
working
togethertosecureabrightmobilebroadbandtomorrow.
1. WellConsideredSpectrumAllocationPoliciesareImperativeA. ConfigureLicenseswithWiderBandwidthsB. GroupLikeServicesTogetherC. BeMindfulofGlobalTechnologyStandardsD. PursueHarmonized/ContiguousSpectrumAllocationsE. ExhaustExclusiveUseOptionsBeforePursuingSharedUseF. NotAllSpectrumisFungibleAlignAllocationwithDemand
2. Marketorientedspectrumassignmentapproachesworkspectrumcapsshouldbe
disfavored.
3. Thereisnotimetolosespectrumallocationscantakeyearstoeffectuate.
4GAmericasmembers,aswellasitsmembercompanies,standpreparedtoaidstakeholdersin
securingthepromiseofmobilebroadband.
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2. INTRODUCTION
2. 1THEMOBILEMIRACLE
It isnothingshortofamobilemiracle. Soremarked the InternationalTelecommunications
Union(ITU),anagencyoftheUnitedNations, inaMay2010reportonmeasuringtheglobal
Information Society. Taking note of the astounding developments in the growth of mobile
broadband,theITUstatedthat:
Promisingdevelopmentsarecurrentlytakingplaceinthemobile
broadbandsector.TheintroductionofhighspeedmobileInternet
accessinanincreasingnumberofcountrieswillfurtherboostthe
number
of
Internet
users,
particularly
in
the
developing
world.
Indeed,thenumberofmobilebroadbandsubscriptionshasgrown
steadilyand in2008surpassedthoseforfixedbroadband.Atthe
endof2009,therewereanestimated640millionmobileand490
millionfixedbroadbandsubscriptions.
TheITUhighlightedthatmobilebroadbandsubscriptionsnowmateriallysurpassfixed
broadbandsubscriptions,andprovidedthefollowinggraphicpunctuatingthisinflectionpoint:
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Prior to delving into these trends in more depth, it is instructive to pause to reflect on the
significance of these trends for our society and its development. Specifically, why is it
importanttonurturemobilebroadband1deployment?
2. 2WH YIT MUSTBENURTURED
As theUnited NationsConferenceon Trade andDevelopment (UNCTAD) succinctly phrased
matters, the benefits of broadband for social and economic development are well
acknowledged.2 It references the frequently cited World Bank finding that, in low and
middleincome countries, every ten percentage point increase in broadband penetration
correspondstoanincreaseineconomicgrowthof1.38percentagepoints;doublethatofhigh
incomecountries.
More
precisely
for
present
purposes,
UNCTAD
notes
that
Wireless offers a more practical broadband entry point for developing
nations. Installation costsare lower than fixed broadbandand formobile
broadband,countriescanleverageexistingnetworks.
MostnationsinLatinAmericaandtheCaribbeanarefacedwiththeurgentneedtoreducethe
digital divide by increasing broadband penetration. At best, broadband penetration hovers
aroundtenpercent. Incontrast,wirelesspenetrationforbasicvoiceanddataservicesalready
reaches95%intheregion,andhassurpassed100%inseveralcountries.
Asaresult,mobilebroadbandislikelytheoptimalsometimestheonlyenablerofInternet
connectivity for residents of the region. Encouragingly, in burgeoning Latin American
economiessuchasArgentina,Brazil,Chile,Colombia,MexicoandUruguay,growth inmobile
broadbandhasexceededtherateofbroadbandaccessprovidedbyfixednetworksduringthe
lasttwelvemonths.
Mobile broadband is already contributing significantly to the GDPs of emerging countries.
Globally,theeconomicboosttotheGDPsofthesenationsisestimatedatUS$300$400billion,
1 Bymobilebroadbandwerefertonetworks,devices,andservicespoweredbycontemporaryhighspeedmobile
datanetworks(principallyHSPA+andLTE).
2UNCTAD,InformationEconomyReport2010atpages2425,
http://www.unctad.org/Templates/webflyer.asp?docid=13912&intItemID=1397&lang=1.
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andrepresents1014millionjobs. InLatinAmerica,comparablefiguresareUS$5070billion
andanadditional1.117millionjobs.3
Thus,thetrendsevidentinotherdevelopingcountriesaremanifestedinLatinAmericaaswell.
Induecourse,ascharacterizedbyProfessorGeraldFaulhaberoftheWhartonSchool,[M]obile
willbecometheportalofchoicetotheInternetformostoftheworldspopulation.4
3 NavigantEconomicsPresentationtoWirelessCommunicationsAssociationInternational,26February2010.
4 GeraldFaulhaber,MobileTelephony: Economic&SocialImpact(4February2010),
http://regulation2point0.org/wpcontent/plugins/downloadmonitor/download.php?id=25.
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3.SPECTRUM FO RMOBILE BROADBAND 3.1. SPECTRUM DEMAND
3.1.1MARKETOVERVIEW
ThemarketintheAmericasformobilebroadbandisinrapidascent. Basedonthemostrecent
subscription data from Informa, UMTSHSPA is the fastestgrowing mobile technology in the
Americas(NorthAmerica,LatinAmericaandtheCaribbean),withsubscriptionsof116million
at the end of 2010. Operators continue to deploy HSPA, the worlds most popular mobile
broadbandtechnology,withatotalof77commercialnetworksin29countriesthroughoutthe
region.5
The rate ofgrowth,quarter overquarter, forUMTSHSPAat the end of December2010 was
54%fortheUS&Canada(77milliontotalsubscriptions)and139%forLatinAmerica(38million
totalsubscriptions). Both ratesofgrowthsurpassed the globalquarteroverquarter rate for
UMTSHSPA subscriptions of 40%. The combined quarter over quarter growth rate for the
hemisphereattheendofDecember2010was74%. Thesetrendsaredepicted inthecharts
below.
5 4GAmericas,3GPPMobileBroadbandTechnologiesLeadtheWayintheAmericas,PressRelease(14March
2011),availableathttp://www.4gamericas.org/index.cfm?fuseaction=pressreleasedisplay&pressreleaseid=3076.
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Supporting this growth is the growing number of commercial HSPA networks in the region.
Presently there are 13 commercially deployed UMTSHSPA networks in the U.S. and Canada,
including5HSPA+networks. InLatinAmericaandtheCaribbean,thereare64HSPAnetworks
commerciallydeployedin27countries,includingsevenHSPA+networks,asdepictedbelow.
LTEnetworksareemergingaswell. Inthesecondhalfof2010,VerizonWirelessandMetroPCS
launchedLTEserviceintheUnitedStates. AT&TisexpectedtolaunchLTEmid2011. InLatin
America, according to MaravedisResearch,momentum is beginning to build as well. By the
endof2011,Maravedisexpectstherewillbemorethan20LTEcommitments,anadditional7
LTEtrialswillbeconducted(inadditiontothe7thathavebeenconductedalready),andthere
maybeupto4operatorswithcommerciallaunchesofthetechnology.Maravedisalsoexpects
thatby20142015morethan25operatorswillhavecommercialLTEservices.6
6MaravedisResearch,26January2011.
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3.1.2GROWTHIN USAGE
In itsmost recentGlobal MobileBroadband TrafficReport, published in February2011, Allot
Communicationscalculatesthatmobiledatabandwidthusagegrewby73%inthesecondhalf
of 2010, culminating in an overall annual growth rate of 190% for 2010. Over one third of
globalmobiledatabandwidthconsistsofvideostreaming,whilefilesharingandwebbrowsing
representanother30%and26%ofglobalmobilebandwidth,respectively. Thefollowingchart
further illustrates these trends, including the clear upswing in video streaming over the past
twoyears.
[Source: AllotCommunications,February2011]
TheAmericasisnotimmunefromtheimpactsofsubscriber,deviceandusagegrowthrateson
mobilebroadbandnetworksbeingexhibitedinotherregionsoftheworld. Thesnapshotbelow
of network key performance indicators (KPIs) from AsiaPacific (APAC), Europe and the
Americas provides a glimpse of the accelerating levels of traffic being carried by mobile
broadband networks fromjust before January 2007 (roughly a year following the first global
launchofawidescaleHSDPAnetworkbyAT&T,thenCingular,during2005)toJanuary2010.
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[Source: NokiaSiemensNetworks,2010]
In
its
most
recent
The
State
of
the
Internet
Report,
for
Q32010,
Akamai
provides
additional
insighton trafficgrowth in thehemisphere. Itsanalysisofconsumptiononmobilenetworks
worldwide spans 111 providers, including 29 operators from 14 countries in the region
(Argentina,Bolivia,Brazil,Canada,Chile,Colombia,ElSalvador,Guatemala,NetherlandAntilles,
Nicaragua, Paraguay,UnitedStates, Uruguay, and Venezuela). Overall, dataconsumption on
mobile networks grew quarter over quarter for 101 of the 111 operators, including five
operatorsforwhichusagemorethandoubledquarteroverquarter.7
Lookingtowardsthefuture,IDATEestimatesthattotalmobiletrafficwillreachmorethan127
exabytes8(EB)globallyin2020,increaseover2010levelsbyafactorof33.
Totalmobiletraffic(EBperyear World)
2010 2015 2020Europe 1.03 10.88 28.15
Americas 0.78 9.84 27.33
Asia 1.65 16.31 43.85
Restoftheworld 0.41 8.22 28.48
World 3.86 45.25 127.82
[Source:IDATE,January2011]
7 Akamai,TheStateoftheInternet 3rdQuarter,2010Report(January2011)atpage27.
8AnExabyteis10
18bytes,orasRTTmemorablyexplains,equivalenttoallthewordseverspokenbymankind.
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By2020Asiawillrepresent34.3%oftotalworldmobiletraffic,Europe22%andtheAmericas
21.4%,accordingtoIDATEandasportrayedbelow.
Totalmobiletraffic(EBperyear World)
[Source:IDATE,January2011]
EricssonhasrecentlyestimatedsimilargrowthratesasIDATEformobiledataonaglobalbasis
fortheupcoming5yearperiod. Bothfirmsforecastannualglobalmobiledatatrafficvolumes
inexcessof40exabytesperyearby2015. Ericssonsprojectionisdepictedinthegraphbelow.
[Source: WirelessIntelligence,February2011]
-
20.00
40.00
60.00
80.00
100.00
120.00
140.00
2010 2015 2020
Yearly
traffic
in
EB
Europe
Americas
Asia
Rest of the world
World
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Ontheotherhand,AlcatelLucentforecastsevenhigherglobalmobiledatavolumesby2015. It
predictsatwentyfoldgrowthinglobalmobiletrafficby2015to8,000petabytes(or8exabytes)
per month, or 96 exabytes on an annualized basis.9 Alcatel Lucents forecast, as depicted
below,isfueledinsignificantpartbyexpandingsmartphonedatagrowthovertheperiod.
[Source: AlcatelLucent,February2011]
The divergence in these figures is less important than their directionality and even more
critically
their
drivers.
Regarding
the
latter
point,
underneath
these
trends
lie
a
variety
of
factors motivating a growing number of users to intensify and diversify their use of mobile
broadband. The increase in both the number and capability of mobile broadband networks
over the past couple of years as one driver is a given. Powerful new handheld devices and
richer content and applications are additional factors. Finally, as connected devices
increasinglypenetrate thesubscriberbase, thenumberofdevices perheadwillalsoadd to
thetotaltrafficonthenetwork.10
Considerationssuchasdevices,mobility,andrichapplicationsarenotsimplyadditive,butwork
synergisticallyinawaythatcompoundstheimpactonmobilebroadbandnetworksmorethan
9 RTTsforecastofdatavolumeisonthehighsideaswell,predicting87exabytesofofferedmobiledatatraffic
globallyby2015. SeeRTT,LTEUserEquipmentEfficiency&NetworkValue,atpage4.10
CreditSuisse(6February2011)estimatesthatthenumberofdevicesperuniqueuserintheUnitedStateswill
climbfrom1.2in2009to3.9in2015,asconsumersaddmobilebroadbandenabledlaptops,tabletsandconnected
devicestotheirdevicecollections.
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justconsideringthesefactorsinamutuallyexclusivemanner. Forexample,Facebookcurrently
reports that there are more than 200 million active users accessing the site through their
mobiledevices,andthatpeopleusingFacebookontheirmobiledevicesaretwiceasactiveon
Facebookasnonmobileusers.11
Moreover, high end devices continue to have distinct, multiplicative impacts. For example,
Ciscos most recent Global Mobile Data Traffic Forecast Update (20102015), released 1
February2011,documentsthatrelativetononsmartphones,themultiplierforhighenddevice
usage in2010as follows: smartphones (24x);handheldgamingconsole (60x);tablet (122x);
mobile phone projector (300x); and laptop (515x).12
These multiplicative effects will persist
through 2015 for all categories of devices, according to Cisco, as illustrated in the following
chartlistingaveragetrafficperdevice(MB/month).
Device Type 2009 2010 2015
Non Smartphone 1.5 3.3 54
E-reader 5 11 245
Smartphone 35 79 1,272
Portable Gaming Console Not Available 250 879
Tablet 28 405 2,311
Laptop and netbook 1,145 1,708 6,522
M2M module 3 35 166
[Source: CiscoVNIMobile,February2011]
Withrespecttowhatconsumersareusingmobilebroadbandcapacityfor,NorthAmericanand
Latin American consumers exhibit important similarities and a few interesting differences.
According to Sandvines most recent Global Internet Phenomena Report (Fall 2010), the top
two mobile application categories in North America and Latin America during peak periods
when bandwidth utilization is the heaviest are RealTime Entertainment (consisting of
applicationsandprotocolspermittingondemandentertainmentconsumedasitarrives),and
webbrowsing. Thiscontinuesthetrend inthedataseen in2H2009. Interestingly,whileP2P
filesharingprofilesarefallinginbothregions,therelativeproportioninLatinAmericaisabout
threetimestheproportioninNorthAmerica. Thefollowingchartsillustratethesetrends.
11http://www.facebook.com/press/info.php?statistics
12 CiscoVNI:GlobalMobileDataTrafficForecastUpdate(1February2011)atpage7.
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[Source: Sandvine,October2010]
Further expounding on these trends, TMobile USA CTO Neville Ray recently noted that the
amount of data consumed by subscribers on TMobiles network is doubling every seven
months, and that video use tripled on its network in 2010.13 Interestingly, the latter figure
coincideswithGooglesrecentdisclosurethatYouTubenowexceeds200millionviewsadayon
mobile,a3xincreasein2010.14
AllotCommunicationsalsoilluminatesthistrendbyobserving
that YouTube is responsible for an astounding 17% of overall global mobile data bandwidth.
Thelattertwotrendsarefurthervisualizedbelow.
[Source: YouTube,January2011] [Source: Allot,February2011]
Where are all these drivers ultimately headed? In short, an endstate exhibiting the
ascendencyofthemobileinternet. By2012,accordingtoMorganStanley,moresmartphones
13 http://gigaom.com/broadband/tmobileshspadoublingdownonspeedsin2011/
14http://youtubeglobal.blogspot.com/2011/01/musicvideosnowonyoutubeappfor.html
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willbeshippedthanPCs(includingnetbooksandnotebooks).Thisreflectsaninflectionpoint
according to Morgan Stanley, suggesting theonset of a fundamental shift in how the typical
consumerwillbeaccessingtheInternetinthecomingyears.
[Source:MorganStanley,November2010]
Providinganappropriatecodaforthisinflectionpoint,EricssonobservedattherecentMobile
WorldCongressthatitexpectsmobilebroadbandsubscribershiptoreach1billionin2011,and
potentially45billionby201516(outofatotalof78billiontotalglobalmobilesubscribers).
Ericsson also anticipates that mobile datagrowth usage by 2015 will attain such levels as to
comefullcirclewithtypicalusagelevelsonPCs.15
15 MorganStanley,Ericsson,QuickComment: FeedbackfromMWC,4February2011.
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3.2 SPECTRUM REQUIREMENTS
Ifyoudon'tknowwhereyouaregoingyoumightwindupsomeplaceelse.
YogiBerra
Predictingthefuturecarriesobviousrisks,andpredictingfuturespectrumrequirementsisnot
immune from this reality. Yet, the effort needs to be made while the future may be
unknowable, nevertheless it can be shaped and influenced. The effort to quantify the
incremental spectrum needed to support mobile broadbands continued vibrancy is a critical
exercise,evenifitisanimpreciseone.
Ataconceptuallevel,spectrumforecastsrequiredataandassumptionsinthefollowingareas:
Available spectrum: currentand foreseen levels of allocations for the relevant studyperiod, tempered by the industry structure (e.g. operator market shares; incumbent
versusentrantstatus,etc.)
Traffic demand: typicallyparameterized in termsof peakor busyhour throughputrequired,andhighlysensitivetouserprofiles,devicesinuse,andservicesdemanded
Networkdesign: assumptionsrelatedtothenetworkarchitecture,encompassingsuchfactors as spectrum portfolio (e.g. high versus low bands), subscriber demographics
(rural versus urban versus suburban), network topology (e.g. cell densities, degree of
utilizationofoffloadingviafemtocellsand/orWiFi,etc.);radioaccesstechnology(e.g.,
EDGE,HSPA,HSPA+,LTE,etc.)
NetworkCosts: estimationsofRANCAPEXandOPEXlevelsrequiredforagivennetworkdesign, including potential spectrum costs, which factors into investment
considerations, that is, tradeoffs among various options to address future capacity
needs(e.g.cellsplitsversus.additionalspectrumpurchases)
Spectrum forecasts are complicated and highly detailed undertakings, involving the
developmentofcomplexdemand/capacitymodelsbasedontheabovefactors. Forpurposes
of this paper, we have not undertaken our own forecast, but have chosen to survey and
summarizethefindingsofrecentforecastsconductedataglobalornationallevel,andtodraw
reasonableinferencesfromthiseffort. Thesummaryanddistillationofkeypointsfollows.
3.2.1.ITURM.2078 (2006)
ITUR M.2078, published in 2006, is probably the most frequently cited long term spectrum
forecastforthemobileindustry. TheITUundertooktodeterminehowmuchspectrumwould
be needed per country in the years 2010, 2015 and 2020. The table below summarizes the
resultsoftheITUsanalysis,whicharebrokendownbyhigherorlowermarketdevelopment
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status compared to a single global common market, as well asby Radio Access Technology
Group(RATG). RATG1coverspreIMTandIMT,aswellasenhancementstoIMT,andRATG2is
comprisedofIMTAdvanced.
Market setting
Spectrum requirement for
RATG 1 (MHz)
Spectrum requirement for
RATG 2 (MHz)
Total spectrum requirement
(MHz)
Year 2010 2015 2020 2010 2015 2020 2010 2015 2020
Higher market setting 840 880 880 0 420 840 840 1 300 1 720
Lower market setting 760 800 800 0 500 480 760 1 300 1 280
[Source: ITURM.2078,2006]The ITU concluded that total spectrum requirements for the higher market setting would be
840MHzby2010,1300MHzby2015and1720MHzbytheyear2020. Evenforthesituationin
which a lower level of market development is assumed, the ITU projected total spectrum
requirementsof760MHzby2010,1300MHzby2015and1280MHzby2020.16
Extrapolating from the ITUs forecast, in 2007 the NGMN Alliance (a global coalition of
operators, industry partners, and academic advisors) determined what the net spectrum
requirement would be, based on existing allocations, in each of the three ITU regions. The
followingchartpresentstheNGMNAlliancesfindings,whichinsummaryarethatbetween500
MHzand1GHzwouldbeneededdependingonregionby2020.17
[Source: NGMNAlliance,June,2007]
16 EstimatedSpectrumBandwidthRequirementsfortheFutureDevelopmentofIMT2000andIMTAdvanced,
ReportITURM.2078(2006).
17 SpectrumRequirementsfortheNextGenerationofMobileNetworks,NGMNAlliance(20Jun.2007)atp.22,
availableat
http://www.ngmn.org/uploads/media/Spectrum_Requirements_for_the_Next_Generation_of_Mobile_Networks.
pdf.
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3.2.2 NATIONAL BROADBANDPLAN(2010)
In March 2010, the US Federal Communications Commission (FCC) released its National
Broadband
Plan
(NPB),
a
report
mandated
the
previous
year
by
the
US
Congress.
Among
other
matters, the NPB described the critical role that mobile operators will play in meeting US
broadband objectives through the remainder of the decade, as well as the incremental
spectrumrequirementthatmobileoperatorswillrequireinordertodoso.18
Inshort,theNPBconcludedthattheUSGovernmentshouldmake500MHzofnewspectrum
availableforbroadbandwithinthenexttenyears,ofwhich300MHzshouldbemadeavailable
forusewithinfiveyears. Further,pursuanttoanExecutiveMemorandumtofederalagencies
issuedinJune2010,U.S.PresidentObamadirectedagenciestoworktosecurethisincremental
500MHzofspectruminatimelyfashion.19
TheFCCpublishedatechnicalpaper,MobileBroadband:theBenefitsofAdditionalSpectrum,20
inOctober2010,thegoalofwhichwastomakeareasonabledemonstrationthatmobiledata
demandislikelytoexceedcapacityundercurrentspectrumavailabilityinthenearterm. The
FCCsconclusionswerethreefold:
Itislikelythatmobiledatademandwillexhaustspectrumresourcesinthenextfive
years;
Aspectrumdeficitapproaching300MHzislikelyby201421
Anarrowlycircumscribedestimationoftheeconomicbenefitfromreleasing
additionalspectrum(thatistheavoidanceofunnecessarycostsinsatisfyingmobile
datademand)islikelytoexceed$100billion(USD).
18 NationalBroadbandPlan,Chapter5:Spectrum(March2010),http://www.broadband.gov/plan/5
spectrum/#_edn67.19
http://www.whitehouse.gov/thepressoffice/presidentialmemorandumunleashingwirelessbroadband
revolution20
http://download.broadband.gov/plan/thebroadbandavailabilitygapobitechnicalpaperno1.pdf21
CreditSuissesMay2010analysisoftheNPBfurtherdemonstratestheloomingspectrumgap. UsingtheFCCs
assumed rate of increase in data consumption and interpolating to 2015 (yielding a 72x increase in data
consumption by 2015), 300 MHz incremental spectrum (1.6x increase over current levels), and accounting for
improvementsinutilizationandspectralefficiency,65%offuturedemandwouldstillbeunmet. Itishard,Credit
Suisse argues, to imagine that these capacity gains can be achieved by further cell splitting. Credit Suisse,
TelecomIndustryThemes: ProfitingfromtheSpectrumCrisis,24May2010,atpages45.
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3.2.3.MOBILEBROADBANDCAPACITYCONSTRAINTS(RYSAVYRESEARCH)
In February 2010, Rysavy Research publishedMobile Broadband Capacity Constraints& the
Needfor Optimization,22
a report which included results of a spectrum demand modeling
exercise suggesting that many operators spectrum could be consumed within three to five
years.
The model isbased on anexamination of how much data users consume in a month,which
depends in part on the type of device. It calculates the bitpersecond load per broadband
subscriberperdevicetypeduringthebusiesttimesoftheday. Themodelthenmultipliesthe
peruser traffic amount by the number of mobile broadband users in a typical cell sector to
obtainatotaldataloadinthatsector. Then,knowingthespectralefficiencyofthetechnology
beingused,themodeldeterminestheamountofspectrumneededtosupportthatload. The
model makes certain projections to account for growth in mobile broadband usage and
increases
in
spectral
efficiency
over
time,
and
calculates
the
amount
of
spectrum
that
a
large
operatorwouldneedtosupportthegivendemandortotaldataloadinasector.
Thefollowingchartdepictstheamountofspectrumanoperatorwouldrequireinitsbusiest
marketstomeetforecasteddemand.
[Source:
Rysavy
Research,
February
2010]
22 http://www.rysavy.com/Articles/2010_02_Rysavy_Mobile_Broadband_Capacity_Constraints.pdf
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Anotherwaytoconsiderthistrend,accordingtothereport,istocomputeaveragedatausage
acrossallsubscribersandthencomparethatwiththeaveragecapacityforeachdatauser,using
agenerousassumptionthatanoperatorhas50MHzofspectrum(25MHz+25MHz)deployed
forjustbroadbanddataservices(1020MHzofspectrumforbroadband ismorecommonfor
thetypicaloperatortoday).
[Source: RysavyResearch,February2010]
These results are broadly consistent with the FCCs conclusion in its October 2010 technical
paper,
noted
above,
that
demand
is
likely
to
outstrip
supply
by
2015,
if
not
earlier,
in
the
absenceofincrementalspectrum.
3.2.4.SPECTRUMMARKETS: MOTIVATIONS, CHALLENGES,ANDIMPLICATIONS(2010)
ProfessorsBerry,HonigandVohraofNorthwesternUniversity,writing intheNovember2010
issue of IEEECommunications Magazine, outlined a vision of an expansive twotier spectrum
market(consistingofasecondarymarketforownerstradingspectrumassetsandaspotmarket
forlimiteddurationrentalsatparticularlocations). Afundamentalpremisetotheworkability
ofsuchamarketis,accordingtotheauthors,theassumptionthatspectrumisindeedascarce
resource. To test this hypothesis, they estimated the achievable rate per user assuming all
spectrum assigned to nongovernment services between 150 MHz and 3 GHz in the United
States is available for mobile broadband access. The total bandwidth is 1,018 MHz, and the
specificspectrumbandsareprovidedinthefollowingtablefromthearticle.
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[Source: IEEECommunicationsMagazine,November2010]
Theauthorsdonotgosofarastoestablishspecificlevelsofscarcityovertime. However,their
conclusionsareinstructive. Basedontheirmodeling,theyfindthatwithgenerousassumptions
as to the availability of a managed infrastructure, coordinated frequency reuse, extensive
spectrumsharing,relativelysmallcellradii,andothers,dataratesinexcessof1Mbpscouldin
principlebemadecontinuouslyavailabletoeverymemberofadenseurbanpopulations.
Evenso,theauthorsacknowledgethatthisrate isoptimisticasaresultoftheassumptions
made. Asapracticalmatter,theyfind,aspectrumshortfallisarealriskintheUnitedStates,
anddemandforspectrummayexceedsupplyasusers,applicationsandsystemsproliferate.
3.3 TAKEAWAYS
Intheprecedingsectionwehaverevieweddatareflectingthedemandformobilebroadbandin
theAmericas. Theregionispoisedforacceleratedgrowthindatabeingtransitedovermobile
broadbandnetworks. Existingstudiesofwhetherthesenetworkswillhavesufficientcapacity
tomeetburgeoningdemandarelimitedandnotsusceptibletooneononecomparison. Some
importantbroadimplicationscan,however,bedrawn.
1. DEMANDISLIKELYTOOUTSTRIPSUPPLYINSHORTORDERUNDERABUSINESSAS
USUALAPPROACH.
Intheabsenceofsignificantactionstoaddresscapacitytrends,mobilenetworksare likelyto
begin experiencing capacity crunches in the next several years. It is unlikely, observes
GoldmanSachs,thatthecurrentspectrumavailabilitywillbeabletosupporttheamountof
datatrafficthatisexpectedtooccur.
23 CreditSuisserecentlyconcludedthat,withregardto
23 GoldmanSachsEquityResearch,LTE:fuelingthemobilesupercycle;implicationsacrossTMT(9February2011)
atpage27.
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the United States, demand for wireless capacity will outstrip what can be offered by all
spectrumcurrentlyavailabletowirelesscarriersby2013.24
While the situation may be less well quantified in the rest of the hemisphere, this is not a
reasontodelayaddressingtheissueintherestoftheregion. Asexplainedfurtherbelow,other
countries in the hemisphere generally begin with a relatively smaller spectrum portfolio for
mobilebroadbandcomparedtotheUnitedStates. Whiledemandmayempiricallybesmallerin
thesecountriescomparedtotheUnitedStates,itisalsotruethatnewspectrumallocationswill
take considerable time to put to use, including potentially for spectrum whose utilization
dependsonthebroadcastTVanalogswitchover.
2. THEREISNOSINGLEPANACEATOADDRESSINGTHISGAP.
Historically,capacityonmobilebroadbandnetworkshasbeenaugmentedinthreebasicways
(1)drivingincreasedspectralefficiencyfromspectrumallocations(asmeasuredinbitsperHz);
(2) increasingthenumberofsites inthenetworksoasto intensify frequencyreuse;and (3)
securingadditionalspectrum.25
Network operators have a long history, continuing up to the present, of driving spectral
efficiency improvements and investing significant resources to densify their networks.
Regarding the former, the evolution of 3GPP technologies from EDGE to HSPA to LTE is
reflectedintheincreasinglevelsofspectralefficiencyovertime.26Thisisillustratedinthechart
below.
24CreditSuisseEquityResearch,Clearwire(6February2011)atpages2728. CreditSuisseforecaststhatwithout
additionalspectrumdatacapacityshortfallintheUnitedStateswouldreach400Kterabytes(TB)permonthby
2015. (ATBis1012
bytes.)
25 Capacityissuescanalsobeaddressedfromthedemandside,thatis,byprovidingtoolsandincentivesforusers
tobetterforecastneeds,includingusagebasedserviceofferingsaswellasgraphicalusertoolstohelpconsumers
monitorandapportiondataconsumption.Thisisapotentiallyimportantcomponentofaddressingcapacity
shortfalls,butliesbeyondthescopeofthepresentreport.
26 EnhancementstothespectralefficiencyofHSPA+andLTEcontinueunabated,exemplifiedbytheconsensus
reachedatthemostrecent3GPPRANPlenaryrelatedtoadditionalfeaturesetsforHSPA+beyondRelease10. See
DraftReportofDecember20103GPPRANPlenary,
http://www.3gpp.org/ftp/tsg_ran/TSG_RAN/TSGR_50/Report/Draft_Report_RAN_50_friday.zip;4GAmericas, 4G
MobileBroadbandEvolution3GPPRelease10andBeyond,Section7(February2011).
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[Source: CreditSuisse,February2011]
Similarly,topologiesformobilenetworkshavebeencharacterizedbyanincreasingnumberof
smallersizedcells. Thetrendtowardmoreandmorecellswithdiminishingcellradiiisforecast
tocontinueinthenearterm;AlcatelLucentprovidesoneestimatebelow.
[Source: AlcatelLucent,June2010,(basedonYankeeGroup2008analysis)]
Cell densification and spectral efficiency gains are bounded, however, by basic technical and
financial realities. Incremental site builds are frequently time intensive, involving additional
zoningand/orleasingapprovals. Byincreasingthenumberofcelledges,operatorsalsoriskan
increase in the potential for intersite interference, adding to the complexity and resources
neededforRFnetworkdesignandmanagement. Finally,densificationissubjecttodiminishing
returns on invested capital as the number of end users that can be served in a financially
prudentwayshrinkspercellsiteastheresultofmoreintensivereuse.
Similarly, the spectral efficiency gains that can be accrued from technology innovation also
comewithaprice. Thesegainsmaybeaccompaniedby increasedcomplexity(andattendant
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costs) in end user devices and network equipment. In addition, technology innovation is
subject to diminishing returns in the form of the Shannon Bound. The Shannon Bound is a
theoreticallimittotheinformationtransferrate[perunitbandwidth]thatcanbesupportedby
agivencommunicationslink.TheboundisafunctionoftheSignaltoNoiseRatio(SNR)ofthe
communications link. As shown in the figure below, current mobile broadband technologies
areallwithin2to3decibels(dB)oftheShannonBound,indicatingthatthereislittleroomfor
improvementinspectralefficiency,speakingstrictlyfromtheperspectiveofinnovationsinthe
radioaccesstechnology.
[Source:
4G
Americas,
September
2010]
The technical and economic limits on cell densification and spectral efficiency as a means to
bolster capacity mean that each technique cannot be relied upon individually to address
capacity concerns. In fact, there is no single panacea to address future mobile broadband
capacity requirements. Both methods will continue to be vital, as will be the importance of
additionalspectrumallocations,thesubjectofthenextsection.27
27 Additionalmeasurestoaddressmobilebroadbandcapacityexist,andthesealsoneedtobethoroughly
investigatedandadoptedwhereappropriateforagivenoperator. Thesetechniquesincludebutarenotlimitedto:
(a)WiFioffloading;(b)femtocells;and(c)applicationlayercompression.
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3. SUPPLEMENTALSPECTRUMALLOCATIONSAREACRITICALPARTOFADDRESSING
THISGAP.
Eachcountryfacesuniquecircumstancesintermsofmobilebroadbanddemandandavailable
spectrum.Thecommonthreadunitingall,however,istheloominggapbetweenthetwo.28
The
Broadband Commission for Digital Development, established last year by the United Nations
and UNESCO, perhaps summed it up best in its September 2010 report,A 2010 Leadership
Imperative The Future Built on Broadband, when it stated that countries must radicallyrethinktheavailabilityofadequateradiofrequencyspectruminthebroadbandera.
29
TheUnitedStatesmaybeanoutlierinthehemisphereintermsofthequantityofspectrum
allocatedtomobilebroadbandincomparisonwithothercountries,assuggestedinthe
followingchartfromCTIAtheWirelessAssociation.
[Source:CTIA,May2010]
Note that the chart above does not reflect AWS auctions concluded in Mexico (as well as
Germany)lastyear,orpreparationsbeingmadeinCanadaandMexicotoauctionspectrumat
700MHzandelsewhereasspectruminthepipeline.
28 Althoughthetopicofthispaperonmobilebroadbandspectrum,growingdatausageparticularlyfrom
smartphonestakesitstollonotherpartsofthenetworkaswell. Smartphonesarenotoriouslychattyorinother
wordsdemandinordinatesignalingresourcesfromthenetwork. Thisintensifiesdemandforspectrum,butin
additionhascapacityimplicationsfornetworknodes(especiallyRadioNetworkControllers(RNCs)andServing
GPRSSupportNodes(SGSNs))thatmustprocessthesesignals. Itmayoftenbethecasethatthesenodeswere
notdimensionedforthesmartphoneonslaughtwhentheywereinstalled,meaningthattheymustbeupgradedin
ordertohandleescalatingsignalingloads. RTTestimatesbasedonpresenttrendsthatsignalingvolumeinmobile
networkswillhaveincreased40%between2008and2012. RTTEconomics,LTEUserEquipment,Network
Efficiency&Value(September2010),atpage45.29
TheBroadbandCommissionforDigitalDevelopmentDeclarationandReport(19September2010)atpage6
(emphasisadded),http://www.broadbandcommission.org/report1/report1.pdf.
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Notwithstanding,allcountries inthehemispherewillconfrontacriticaldecisionaljuncture in
the short term. The NGMN Alliance, as described above, extrapolated from ITUs 2006
spectrum forecast to determine that 500 MHz 1 GHz of incremental spectrum would be
neededbycountriesintheAmericasby2020,dependingonthelevelofmarketdevelopment.
Observingthatcongestiononbroadbandnetwork issettoworsen, ITUSecretaryGeneralDr.
HamadounTourrecentlycalledongovernmentstotakeurgentactionnowtosupportmobile
broadband growth, remarking that steps including greater spectrum availability are
imperative inordertoavoidnetworkbottlenecks.30
Willcountriesheedthismobilebroadband
calltoaction?
30 ITU,Networkcongestionsettoworsen ITUcallsforinternationalbroadbandcommitment,11February2011,
http://www.itu.int/net/pressoffice/press_releases/2011/01.aspx.
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4. SPECTRUM ANIMATING PRINCIPLES
4.1 WELL CONCEIVED SPECTRUMSTRATEGIES ARE VITAL
In thissection,wedescribea setofprinciples that4G Americasbelievesshouldanimate the
developmentofstrategiesforensuringthecontinuedvitalityofmobilebroadbandservices in
theAmericas. Wepresentprinciplesintheareaofspectrumallocation,spectrumassignment,
andtiming. Togetherwiththeseprinciples,wepresentspecificillustrationsofhowindividual
countries have pursued or are pursuing efforts which are generally aligned with these
principles. By instantiating these principles, meaningful guidance can be provided on how to
bringthemtolife,toconvertwordsintoaction.
4.1.1 CORESPECTRUMALLOCATIONTENETS
Notwithstandingcontinuing innovationand investment that has led to more intensiveuse of
spectrum assets, suitable and sufficient additional spectrum is critical to meet the growing
demandformobilebroadband. 4GAmericasbelievesthatthefollowingtenetsshouldanimate
efforts to allocate spectrum resources. The principles outlined below will further stimulate
investments,keepcostsdown,andultimatelyhelpmeetdemandforbroadbandservices ina
timelymanner.
CONFIGURELICENSESWITHWIDERBANDWIDTHS
Technologies that support ever more supple mobile broadband capability, such as LTE, will
increasingly require wider bandwidth channels to meet consumer demand for bandwidth
intensive and contentrich services.31 Wider spectrum blocks maximize spectrum use by
accommodatingmorebitsandallowingmoreresourcestobepooledforsharingamongusers.
Spectrum allocations should therefore be in sufficiently large, contiguous blocks to
accommodate the future development of mobile broadband networks. Particularly in urban
andsuburbanareas,allocationsshouldfocus,ataminimum,on2x10MHzblocks.
31 HSPA+performancecanbeenhancedbycombiningtwoormore5MHzcarriersinatechniqueknownascarrier
aggregation. LTEcanbedeployedinarangeofbandwidthsfrom1.4,3,5,10,15to20MHz,andcanalsobenefit
fromcarrieraggregationtechniques. Fromaspectralefficiencystandpoint,however,carrieraggregationcannot
beconsideredasubstituteforwiderchannelsinthefirstinstance.
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GROUPLIKESERVICESTOGETHER
Currentspectrumallocation frameworkstend largelytocompartmentalizespectrumbytypes
of services. The grouping of like services can reduce complexity and cost, and allow more
flexibility in the form factor of the subscriber equipment. For example, allocating additional
spectrumadjacenttosimilarservicesandwithsimilarduplexdistancesreducesthenumberof
bandsthatadevicemustsupport. Standardsdevelopmentwouldasaresultbeaccelerated,
and existing user equipment would be more easily modified rather than requiring new
technologydevelopments,whichacceleratesthemarketavailabilityofthosedevices.
This would be accomplished because the selection of the additional spectrum would not
increasethenumberofbandstobesupportedinamultibanddevice. Weofferaspotentially
positive developments in this area two inquiries recently begun by Mexico and the United
Statestoconsiderallocatingadditionalspectrum formobilebroadbandabove1755MHzand
2155
MHz.
These
efforts
are
in
alignment
with
3GPP
Band
10
(the
extended
AWS
Band
directly adjacent to 3GPP Band 4), which is harmonized throughout the Americas.32
Supplementingcurrentallocationsinthiswaywouldreducedevicecomplexityandcost the
additional spectrum band can be implemented largely as an extension to an existing band.
Designatingspectrumforcertainservicesadjacenttolikeservicespectrumbands,withsimilar
duplexdistances,wouldconsequentlymaximizeperformanceandefficiencies.
BEMINDFULOFGLOBALSTANDARDS.
Technical standards are the foundation for service providers and manufacturers to develop
competitive
products
and
services.
Further,
standards
help
facilitate
regulatory
compliance,
establish patent policies for use of essential technologies, provide a platform for third party
supplier solutions, and serve to energize investment. Finally, standards allow companies to
take advantage of economies of scale that lower costs and promote growth, maximizing
opportunitiesforinnovation.
Inmany instances,globallyacceptedstandardsaredevelopedwithspecificspectrumbands in
mind, and take into consideration coexistence with adjacent services. Therefore, whether
certain spectrum bands have been harmonized and whether a standard exists should be
factoredintospectrumallocationdecisionmaking.
32Seehttp://www.ntia.doc.gov/press/2011/500mhzstatement_02012011.html (NTIAannounces31January2011
thatitwillbegindetailedanalysisofwhethergovernmentspectrumat17551850MHzcanberepurposedfor
commercialbroadbanduse);http://www.cft.gob.mx/es/CofetelCofetel_2008/Reporte_Consulta_Publica_Espectro
(Cofetelsummaryissued8February2010ofpublicconsultationinitiatedinNovember2010onseveralspectrum
bands,including175570MHz&215570MHznotably,allrespondentsexpressedinterestinthesebands).
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PURSUEHARMONIZED/CONTIGUOUSSPECTRUMALLOCATIONS.
Ensuring that spectrum allocations are, to the greatest extent possible, in accord with
internationalallocationspromotesinnovationandinvestmentbycreatingcriticaleconomiesof
scale. Similarly,harmonizationfacilitatesglobalroamingandhelpscountriesthatshareborders
managecrossborderinterference.Withoutharmonization,newtechnologiesandservicescan
be difficult to export to other markets, and internal markets will fail to benefit from
developments in international markets. Fragmented spectrum allocations hamper innovation
and require companies to dedicate resources to develop new or adapt existing products or
technologiesforasinglemarket,ratherthansharingthosedevelopmentcostsglobally. This,in
turn, increases thecostsand limits the potentialavailability of products and services for the
consumer. Moreover, new/modified technology takes time to commercialize, delaying the
availabilityofservicesanddevicesinthemarkettomeetburgeoningmobiledatademand.
One
of
the
main
reasons
OFDM
was
selected
as
the
multiplexing
technique
for
LTE
relates
to
its
abilitytosubstantiallyincreasespectralefficiencywhenthetransmittedRFsignaliscomposed
of a relatively large number of orthogonal subcarriers. The latter requires a relatively large
amountofcontiguousspectrum.Theresultingincreaseinspectralefficiencyisinthenatureof
astatisticalgain,alsoknownas trunkingefficiency. Trunkingefficiency increasesasdatafor
various users are scheduled (multiplexed) for transmission over larger numbers of sub
carriers,anditsmagnitudeisthusdeterminedbytwofactors:(a)therobustnessofthenetwork
scheduling algorithms, and (b) the amount of spectrum the RF signal occupies. From an
operationalstandpoint,OFDMbasedtechnologies likeLTEcanexhibitasignificant increase in
spectral
efficiency
if
the
occupied
spectrum
is
at
least
10
MHz
(or
10
x
10
MHz
if
considered
on
apairedbasis).
EXHAUSTEXCLUSIVEUSEOPTIONSBEFOREPURSUINGSHAREDUSE.
The exclusive use model refers to a framework in which a licensee has rights that are
exclusive, flexible,and transferable,whileat thesametime inheritingspecific responsibilities
thatcomewiththeserights. Inanexclusiverightsmodel,thelicenseeinsomecasescanlease
some or all of the spectrum usage rights associated with their licenses to third parties.
Licenseesarealsoaffordedprotectionfrominterferenceandmayusethespectruminaflexible
manner
consistent
with
the
terms
of
the
license.
Moreover,
the
certainty
provided
by
the
exclusiveuselicensingapproachencouragesinvestmentbypromotinganenvironmentinwhich
interferenceandsystemcapacitycanbepredicted.
Successfulsharingarrangementsmustbetailoredtothespecificconditions intheband,ona
bandbybandbasis. Theseconditionsmustbeknownatthepointofdesigninceptiontoavoid
inappropriate and costly technology development. Because each sharing environment is
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unique, technology research and development suitable for the services sharing frequency
bands and knowledge of the specific sharing constraints are required; otherwise, investment
andinnovationwillbeimpededbysuchoperationaluncertainties.
Somesharingenvironmentsarelessconstrainedthanothers.Theseenvironmentsarecreated
bygrouping likeserviceswheretechnologiesandtechnicalrulesaresimilaramongoperators.
Forexample,a fixedservicecanbeeasiertopredictandengineerthanamobileservice,and
with appropriate licensing or notification requirements, can provide regulatory certainty a
prerequisiteforinvestment.
Inaspectrumsharingenvironment,spectralresourcesaremadeavailablebasedonestablished
technical etiquettes or standards that set power limits and other criteria for operation of
devicestomitigatepotential interference. Inaddition,thesharingenvironmentmustbewell
understood sharing criteria may include geographic protection zones, power limits and
temporal
restrictions.
For
example,
spectrum
may
not
be
available
at
certain
times
of
the
day,
ormaynotbeusednearcertainsites,forinstancenearradarsites.
Theuncertaintyofspectrumaccessandpotentialsharingconstraintscantranslateintohigher
networkcosts,andcan limitthetypesofservicesthatcanbesupported.Thus,proposals for
spectrum sharing need to be closely examined, weighing the benefits and opportunities
provided with a variety of other factors including service viability, technology support, and
adequateknowledgeoftheoperatingenvironment.
NOTALLSPECTRUMISFUNGIBLEALIGNALLOCATIONWITHDEMAND.
Futurenetworkswillinalllikelihoodbenetworksofnetworksconsistingofmultipleaccess
technologies, multiple bands, widely varying coverage areas, all selforganized and self
optimized.33 Partof theconsideration tosupport thedevelopmentofsuchnetworksand
theevolutionofdataserviceswillbetheavailabilityofsuitablespectrum,cellsitespacing,
and increases in spectral efficiency to support an increase in the number of users and an
increaseinthedatathroughputavailabletoeachuser.
Essentially, these networkswill need to addresscoverage requirements, that is, adequateserviceacrossabroadlydefinedgeographicarea.Thiswouldincluderuralandisolatedareas
where the population density is low. In this case, the ability to provide services more
efficiently isenhancedusingspectrumwithappropriatepropagationcharacteristics,which
arecharacteristicofthelowerradiofrequencies. Therearealsospecificneedsforcapacity,
33Transitionto4G:3GPPBroadbandEvolutiontoIMTAdvanced,RysavyResearch/4GAmericas,Sept2010,
http://www.4gamericas.org/documents/3G_Americas_RysavyResearch_HSPA LTE_Advanced_FINALv1.pdf.
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inwhichgreaterbandwidth isneededacrossasmallerarea,butbyanumberof interests
contending for limited spectral resources. This tends to be the case particularly in dense,
urban environments. Even with the latest digital air interfaces and other new network
features, carriers still need to add new cell sites or purchase additional spectrum to
supplementnetworkcapacity.34
Stated differently, when considering frequency bands and combinations thereof, device
manufacturers often categorize bands in terms of high band or low band designations.
Highbandsare frequencybandsabove1GHz (forexample,1900,2100,and2100MHz); low
bandsarethe frequencybandsbelow1GHz (examples700,850,and900MHz). Thehigher
bandsaregenerallyeasierto implement inadevice intermsofsize,asthehigherfrequency
bands require shorter antenna length. The lower bands require longer antennas for optimal
performance. In 3G and 4G devices with multiband support, the number of high bands
supportedalwaysexceedsthenumberof lowbands.SeetheaccompanyingchartforUShigh
andlowbandallocations.
[Source:CreditSuisse,May2010]
34InFocus: TheCapacityChallenge,RossErnst,TenXcWireless,
http://connectedplanetonline.com/wireless/technology/infocus_capacity_challenge_112706
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Propagation characteristics are sometimes overlooked, but their impact can be tangible and
very significant for overall design and performance. Suitable lower band frequencies can
penetratewallsofbuildingsandhaveasignificantcoveragerangewithoutrequiringthemobile
handsettosupportanunwieldyantenna.
Future IMTAnetworkswillsupport100Mbpsforhighmobilityand1Gbpsforlowmobility.35
The spectrum to serve those areas where the demand for services reaches these levels will
largelycomefromhigherfrequencybandsthathaveadequatecontiguousspectrumtosupport
thetrafficgenerated.
The implementation of future networks must support access to communications anywhere,
anytime. Therefore these networks will rely on multipleaccess technologies supported by a
variety of spectrum bands to address both coverage and capacity needs. This will require
suitablelowerfrequenciestosupportinbuildingcoverageaswellassparselypopulatedareas,
in
addition
to
higher
bands
supporting
capacity
objectives
through
a
mix
of
macro,
micro
and
picocelldeployments.
35ITURM.1645,FrameworkandOverallObjectivesoftheFutureDevelopmentofIMT2000and
SystemsBeyondIMT2000(2003).
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4.1.2 SIDEBARWHYDOESAL LTHISMATTER?
WhyDoesAllThisMatter?
TheImpactonDevices,Equipment,CostandPerformance
A. SpectrumBandProliferation/Fragmentation
Ifonegoesback1015yearsintime,inthecontextofGSM,devicemanufacturersonlyhadto
consideroneortwofrequencybandswhendesigningamobilephone.MultibandGSMdevices
which allowed for global roaming soon followed in the early 2000s, bringing support for 23
frequencybands,typicallyincludingabandsolelyforglobalroaming.Withthemid2000scame
the advent of UMTS/WCDMA technology, creating the need tosupport local 3G frequency
bandsinadeviceinadditiontotherequiredGSMbandsforbothlocalandglobalroaminguse.
Notsurprisingly,thedemandforglobalroamingwith3Gputfurtherpressurefor inclusionof
additionalroamingbandsinhandsets.
The advent of LongTerm Evolution (LTE) technology will place additional frequency band
requirements on mobile device manufacturers, as LTE supports interworking with the legacy
technologies. As LTE technology matures and home network coverage increases, device
manufacturerswillbeexpectedtosupportthelocaland roamingbandswhichsupportthis
technologyaswell.This,inpractice,couldmeansupportingtwotothreeadditionalfrequency
bands, on top of what is required for the legacy technologies. Currently, over 30 frequency
bandsaresupportedinthestandardsforLTE,asdepictedbelow.
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AsnetworkcapabilitiesevolvefurtherintotheHSPA+domainandentertheLTEdomain,smart
phones and their associated features have become a growing area of industry attention and
benchmarking. One common benchmark of a mobile device identifies the radio technology
supportedinaparticularfrequencybandsupport(seeoneexamplebelow).
[Source: www.tmobile.com]
On
a
basic
level,
this
provides
an
idea
of
where
(or
on
what
network)
the
device
can
operate
andwhatlevelofoperationcanbesupported(e.g.GSM/EDGEversusUMTS/HSPA).
Today,mostsmartphonessupportthefourGSM/EDGEfrequencybands,allowingforsupport
ofboth localoperationsandglobalroaming.The localGSM/EDGEoperations intheAmericas
includemainlythe850and1900MHzbands,andtheGSM/EDGEglobalroamingbandsinclude
the 900 and 1800 MHz bands. When considering the 3G band, the focus in the Americas is
typicallyon23frequencybands.Theseincludethe850MHz(cellular),1900MHz(PCS)andthe
AWS(1700/2100MHz)band,dependingontheoperatorsrequirements. Incaseswhereglobal
3Groamingsupportisdesired,the1900/2100MHzbandprevails,withthe900MHzbandbeing
concurrentlysupportedinsomecases.
Consequently, WCDMA/HSPA implementations across the globe have resulted in spectral
fragmentation into the aforementioned5majorbands (850,900, 1700/2100,1900and2100
MHz bands). In the extreme case, a mobile device capable of supporting the 4 GSM/EDGE
bandsand5WCDMA/HSPAbandswouldbecapableofsupportingfull2Gand3Goperationon
agloballevel. Therearesomehighendsmartphonedevicesavailablewhichcansupportthis
configurationtoday,butthislevelofsupportiscertainlynotwidespreadatthistime.
Compoundingmatters,devicemanufacturersalsofacetherealitythatnotallfrequencybands
areequal from an implementationstandpoint.Considerations here include whether or not
thebandisahighbandoralowbandaswellasthespectralproximityofagivenbandto
otherbands.
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B. LimitsonFrequencyBandSupport
In theory, there is no hard upper limit on the number of frequency bands that can be
supported in a mobile device. However, there are very pragmatic limits on the number of
bands, driven generally by cost, size, and performance issues. An additional frequency band
increases the number of RF components required in the device, resulting in bill of material
increasesaswellasadditionalpressuresonlimitedrealestateinsidethedevice.
Theimpactofaddinganadditionalbandalsodependsonwhatbandisbeingaddedrelativeto
whatotherbandsarepresentinthedevice. Iftheadditionalbandliesclosetoanexistingband,
itmaybepossibletocoverthisadditionalbandwithsomeofthesameRFcomponentsandthe
existing antenna(s). If the additional band is far away from other bands there is a much
greaterimpactoncostandsize. New,possiblydedicatedRFcomponentsmustbeaddedandin
somecasesevenanadditionalantenna(orantennas).
Sometimes,antennasaredesignedtocovermultiplebandsinthemobiledevicewherefeasible.
There can be a performance tradeoff in attempting to increase antenna bandwidth to
accommodate new bands. These tradeoffs can be particularly acute if the new band is a
prioritybandfortheoperator,whichmightotherwisedrivedevicevendorstobuildnarrower
antenna bandwidths so as to obtain better overtheair performance. In this case, the cost
versusperformancecalculationcanbeparticularlyvexingforoperatorsandtheirvendors.
C. ImpactonDeviceComponents
(1)BasicHandsetDesign.
Atitsmostelemental,mobileRFdevicesconsistofoneormorefrontendmodules(FEMs)
connectedtodigitalbasebandunitsaswellasoneormoreantennas. Onerepresentationofa
multibandradiodesignidentifyingthesevariouscomponentsisprovidedbelow.
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[Source: RTTEconomics,September2010]
The FEMs manage the RF signal paths into and out of the device, and include numerous
componentssuchasfiltersandamplifiers. Manyfrontendfunctionsareanalog innature,as
befitstheradiowavesexitingandenteringthedevice. Incontrast,thebasebandunitsperform
thecomplexdigitalsignalprocessingrequiredtoencodeordecodeRFtransmissionsaccording
to the technology embedded in baseband chips. Although baseband, FEM and antenna
performance are closely interrelated, spectrum fragmentation has comparatively more
significanceonthedesignandperformanceofantennasandFEMsthanbasebandunits,duein
nosmallmeasuretotheirdependenceonthephysicallayoutofthevariousdeviceelements.
(2)Antennas.
A critical consequence of spectrum fragmentation relates to the feasibility of manufacturing
deviceswithincreasinglymoresophisticatedantennaetechnology. Forexample,theabilityfor
mobiledevicesusingHSPA+andLTEtechnologiestoprovideeverhigherdataratesovertime
dependsontheincorporationofinnovativenewtechniques. Oncesuchinnovationisknownas
MIMO Multiple Input/MultipleOutput whichallowsthedevicetosenddatatoandfrom
thenetworkonparalleldatastreams,thusboostingthetheoreticaldataratesofthesedevices.
Asadesignmatter,MIMOrequiresthatmultipleradiopathsbesupportedwithinthespectrum
bands designated for HSPA+ or LTE. In practice, this means multiple antennas must be
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implemented in the mobile device for these bands, meaning not only additional antenna
elementsbutalsofrontendcomponents.
Multiple antenna techniques such as MIMO depend on antenna separation, polarization and
radiation pattern in order to achieve the best possible performance. If there is coupling
betweentheantennas,thepositiveperformanceeffectofMIMOmightbereduced,particularly
dueto increased losses(i.e.,antennaefficiency). Theresult issuboptimalperformance,with
datarateslowerthandesired,includingthepossibilityofbeinglowerthaninthesingleantenna
case.
Asaveryroughestimate,aminimum0.15wavelengthseparationbetweenantennasisneeded
toallowamobiledevicetoachieveitstargetperformancelevels. Inthecaseof700MHzthis
wouldmeanaphysicalseparationofapproximately2.5 inchesbetweentheantennas. When
considering the 1900 MHz band this would translate to roughly 1 inch. Clearly, there is a
sizeable
difference
between
these
separation
requirements
when
considering
support
for
differentspectrumbandsandtheconsequentimpactonthesizeofthedevice.
Experience from commercial launch LTE networks suggests that MIMO can perform in small
mobile device form factors comparably in lower frequencies as in higher frequencies,
notwithstanding the need for increased wavelength separations. The problem arises when
more and more spectrum bands need to be introduced into the device to provide sufficient
bandwidth(aswellasforotherconsiderationsincludingroamingandcoveragerequirements),
whichpresentsadditional,significantdesignchallengesformobiledevices.
Device
manufacturers
must
also
consider
the
following
factors
in
their
device
designs
when
incorporatingmultipleantennatechnologies:
Frequencybandofoperation
Signaltonoise(SNR)targets
Interferencemitigationtargets(fromusersbothinsidethecellandinadjacentcells)
Formfactorofthedevice
OtherradiosinthedevicewhichmayincludeWiFi,GPS,Bluetooth,andFMRadio
Whenthesefactorsareconsideredandthenextendedtoincludemultiplefrequencybandsof
operation,thedesignequationbecomesdramaticallymorecomplex. Theaboveconsiderations
alldependtovariousdegreesonthefrequencybandsemployedinthedevice.Theotherradios
presentinadevicemayoperatenearoneoftherequiredmobilefrequencybands,forexample,
ormayrequiresomeadditionalisolationinsideofthedevicefromotherbands.
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(3)OtherComponents.
Asthebandrequirementsformobiledevicescontinuetogrow,andbandsbecomeincreasingly
fragmented, device manufacturers face growing challenges associated with finding the
additionalrealestatewithinthedeviceforadditionalfrontendcomponentsandantennas. The
additionalfrontelementsdonotscaletoquitethesamedegreeasbasebandunits,duepartly
totheirdependenceonphysicallayoutandspaceconstraints.
As a result, including new bands in a device adds nonrecurring engineering (NRE) and
production costs. This would not prove problematic to the extent the market for the newly
designed device was sufficiently large so that the costs could be amortized over a large
customerbase. However,bydefinition,devicesincorporatingnonharmonizedspectrumbands
will findappeal inonly isolatedmarkets,whichsave forChinaor India,willalmost invariably
lackthenecessaryscale.
D. AdditionalBandProliferation/FragmentationImpacts
Itshouldalsonotbeoverlookedthatspectrumbandproliferationandfragmentationcanhave
impactsonthecostandperformanceofradionetwork infrastructure. Existingradiosatbase
stationsmayneedtobeupgraded,orentirelynewradiosmayneedtobedeployed. Increased
CAPEXwillberequiredforthenewinfrastructure,whichfrequentlyalsoentailsincreasedOPEX
for servicing and maintaining the equipment. See below for a schematic of modern base
station architecture, wherein radios (remote radio units or RRUs) are increasingly situated
closertotheantennaunits(AUs).
[Source: DesignArtNetworks(2010)]
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4.1.3 ILLUSTRATIONS
Mexico
In November 2010, Mexico initiated a consultation to solicit information on the potential to
make
spectrum
available
in
three
bands:
700
MHz,
1.7/2.1
GHz
and
3.4
3.7
GHz.36
With
respecttothesecondcategory,Cofetelsoughtspecificresponsestoquestionsabout175570
MHzand21552170MHz. This30MHz isanextensiontothe90MHzofAWS1 frequencies
which were auctioned in 2010. Together, they constitute 3GPP Band X, a band harmonized
throughoutthishemisphereforHSPAandLTE. Thequestionsweredesignedtoprovideinput
on interest inand optimaluses for theband, device ecosystem and infrastructure readiness,
preferredchannelization,andpossibleauctionconcepts.37
Canada
InJune2010,IndustryCanadacommencedaconsultationonthetransitiontoBroadbandRadio
Service (BRS) in the25002690MHzbandandassociatedmodificationsto theexistingband
plan. Withrespecttothebandplan,IndustryCanadaoutlinesthebenefitsanddisadvantages
oftwopossibleoptions,oneconsistentwiththeUSallocationandtheotherconsistentwithITU
Option1andwhichisbeingadoptedbynumerouscountriesacrosstheglobe. IndustryCanada
concludesbyproposingtoadoptITUOption1andseekinginputontheimplicationsofsucha
bandplan.38
Brazil
Anatel ismoving toacceleratetheprocessof licensing the2.5GHzband,whichwasrecently
reserved formobiletelephonyserviceandalignedwith ITUOption1. Accordingto thedraft
schedule,theauctionmayoccurinearly2011,atleastoneyearaheadofpreviousforecasts. If
thetendertakesplaceinFebruary2011,LTEnetworksmaybedeployedinBrazilby2013.
36 http://www.cft.gob.mx/es/CofetelCofetel_2008/Cuestionario_para_la_banda_1721_GHz(11November2010).
4GAmericasfiledcommentsinsupportoftakingactionconsistentwiththeBandXregionalharmonization
scheme.
37 Asnotedearlierinthispaper,theUnitedStateshasrecentlybegunanexaminationintowhethergovernment
spectrumat17551850MHzcanberepurposedforcommercialwirelessbroadbanduse. Suchactionscouldalso
besynergisticwiththeBandXallocationinthehemisphere.
38 ICconsultation: http://www.ic.gc.ca/eic/site/smt gst.nsf/eng/sf09881.html.4GAmericasfiledcommentsinthe
proceeding,availableat http://www.ic.gc.ca/eic/site/smt gst.nsf/vwapj/dgso001103GAmericas
comments.pdf/$file/dgso001103GAmericascomments.pdf
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4.2 MARKET ORIENTED ASSIGNMENT APPROACHES WORK SPECTRUM CAPSSHOULD BE
DISFAVORED.
Since1998,spectrumcaps the totalamountofspectrumthatanoperatorcanownhave
beenappliedbyLatinAmericanregulators inanattempttostimulatecompetitionby limiting
theabilityoftheestablishedoperatorstoacquirenewspectrum,fuelingnewentrantstoenter
themarket,anddiscouragingmergers. Themajorityofcountries intheregionhavethreeor
four mobile operators competing in the market. With mobile penetration in Latin America
above96%, the region is ripe for theadvancementofmobilebroadbandservices. However,
such deployment is being constrained by spectrum caps, which creates lengthy delays every
time new auctions are planned. Existing operators with costefficient access to capital and
operational knowledge are often prohibited from participating. Given the degree of
competition in countries applying them, caps may not be necessary to ensure a competitive
market, and may actually undermine those countries goals of deploying spectrumintensive
mobilebroadbandtechnologies.Capsmaydiscourageoperator investment inbothurbanand
ruralareas,andraisecostsforconsumers.
Recentacademicworksupportstheseconclusions. BerkeleyUniversityProfessorMichaelKatz
summarizestherisksasfollows:
Spectrum caps act as a tax on success and can distort and limit
competition. A binding spectrum cap can increase the costs of
expansion foraserviceproviderthathasdevelopedasuccessful
business model that requires additional spectrum to meet
consumer demand for its services. A spectrum cap therefore
punishessuccessand,thus,discouragesfirmsfromcompetingto
attractconsumersthroughimprovedservicesandlowerprices.39
Econometric modeling of the impact of spectrum caps in Chile, Argentina and Colombia
suggests this very outcome caps can increase prices and lower service quality, the very
objectivespresumablydisfavoredbypolicymakers. FranciscoMarroqunUniversityProfessor
Wayne Leightons quantification of the impact of spectrum caps in these markets led to the
followingconclusions:(a)halvingthespectrumavailabletoanoperatorforLTEfrom40MHzto
20
MHz
resulted
in
a
doubling
of
costs
to
provide
service;
and
(b)
a
further
halving
to
10
MHz
39 DeclarationofMichaelL.Katz,PublicPolicyPrinciplesforPromotingEfficientWirelessInnovationand
Investment, inFCCDocket0966,30September2009.
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led to a further quadrupling of the cost of LTE service. Higher costs invariably lead to lowerdemand,andhenceloweradoption,ofmobilebroadband.40Asthemobilewirelessindustrymovestothenextgenerationoftechnologiesandservices,thespectrumcapsofthe1990sseemantiquatedandbuiltuponapasteraoflowpenetrationvoiceservices. Inmanycountriestheoldspectrumcaprulesarebecominglimitingfactorstobringingtomarketnewbroadbandservicesandapplicationsthatwouldbenefitsociety.As spectrum regulators review their countries specific caps, they should consider a few keyquestions:
1. Does significant and measurable operator competition exist in themarketplace?2. Is enough spectrum available today for operators to commercially deploymobile broadband data technologies such as HSPA+ and LTE in the next fewyears?3. Is the country proactively aligning with International TelecommunicationUnion(ITU)orotherestablishedguidelinesfortheamountofspectrumrequiredtofomentthenextgenerationofwirelesstechnologies?
The following table shows the current spectrum caps applied in large markets such asArgentina,Brazil,Chile,Colombia,MexicoandPeru.
40 WayneA.Leighton,MeasuringtheEffectsofSpectrumAggregationLimits: ThreeCaseStudiesfromLatinAmerica(25October2009).
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TheresultsofMexicanspectrumAuctions20&21heldinJuly2010servetodemonstratethe
consequences of imposing spectrum caps in an era of skyrocketing demand for mobile
broadband. ThespectrumcapestablishedbytheCFC(ComisinFederaldeCompetencia)for
Auctions 20 & 21 meant that the maximum amount of spectrum that any operator could
accumulate,includinganyspectrumheldin850MHz,1900MHzand1700/2100MHz,couldnot
exceed 80 MHz. Due to the fact that three of the four operators had more than 50 MHz
accumulatedinseveraloratleastoneofthenineregionswheretheauctionwasgoingtotake
place,thiseffectivelymeantthatnoneofthemcouldbidforanationwideAWSlicensebecause
theywouldthenexceedthe80MHzcapinoneormoreoftheregionsmonitoredbytheCFC.
Theendresultisthatofthe90MHzavailableinthisbandfor3nationwidelicenses,onlyone
licensewasawardedtoanewconsortium,whileonelicensewentwithoutasinglebid.
Similarly, Colombias auction of spectrum in the 25002690 MHz band in July 2010
demonstratestheflawsofbluntlyappliedspectrumcaps. TheColombiangovernmentimposed
anewspectrumcapof55MHz fortheestablishedandnewoperators inthe850MHz,1900
MHzand25002690MHzbandsANDalsomandatedthatminimumbidswouldneedtobeat
least30MHz. Inpractice,thismeantthatthethreeestablishedoperatorscouldnotparticipate,
andthatthisspectrumwasofflimitstothoseoperators.41
Insummary,spectrumcapsinplaceinsomecountriesinLatinAmericawillinhibitanddelaythe
deploymentofmobilebroadbandservices. Capscanactually limitcompetition by restricting
outputandpreventingmobileoperators fromgrowingand innovating. Severalmore flexible
regulatoryalternativeshavebeenimplementedbyothercountriestoaddresspotentiallackof
competition
and
to
achieve
universal
service
goals
without
having
to
depend
upon
distortive
overall spectrum aggregation limits. In general, casebycase review of a markets
competitiveness,asreflectedbytheabsenceofanysingleproviderbeingabletocontrolprice
orrestrictoutput,isapreferabletool. Suchanapproachwillbetterallowformobilebroadband
tobedeployedtoconsumersthroughouttheAmericas.
41 ColombiasMinistryofICT,ithasbeenreported,recentlydecidedtoraiseitsspectrumcapto60MHz.
http://www.telecomsinsight.com/file/95347/colombiacreatescapacityformobilebroadbandgrowth.html.
Tellingly,thisreportalsoindicatesthatdatafromtheMinistryshowsthatmobiledatausagehasgrown
exceptionallyinColombia.
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4.2.1 ILLUSTRATIONS
UnitedStates
In2001,theFederalCommunicationsCommission(FCC)decidedtoeliminatespectrumcapsof
55
MHz
(in
all
geographic
service
areas)
and
replace
them
with
a
case
by
case
competitive
reviewtoensurecompetition. Ascreeningguidelinewasadopted,atwhichlevelanoperators
spectrumholdingsandsituationcouldbereviewedforpotentialanticompetitiveeffects.Since
theeliminationofspectrumcaps,theU.S.hasledtheworldinmobilebroadbanddeployment.
Presently, the screening guideline is defined as between 95 145 MHz, depending on the
availabilityofAWS1and/or2.6GHzBRSspectruminagivenmarket.
Canada
In 2004, Industry Canada (IC) eliminated its spectrum caps after finding that the policy to
overseespectrumconcentrationhadbecomelessrelevant.
UnitedKingdom
Competition intheU.K.mobilemarkethasbeenenabledbythe issuanceofseparate licenses
ratherthanbytheimpositionofspectrumcaps.ThesectorregulatorOfcomhaspronouncedin
favor of applying general competition policy and relaxing restrictions on spectrum use to
resolve or preempt potential competition problems, accompanied by bandspecific spectrum
caps that are loose and flexible. Ofcom is planning an auction of the 2.6 GHz band in 2012
accordingtothefollowingguidelines:
Technology andservice neutrality
Alooseorsafeguardbandspecificspectrumcapof80MHz(outof190MHz)
Norolloutorcoverageobligations
Acquiredspectrumwillbetradable
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4.3 THERE ISNO TIME TO LOSESPECTRUMALLOCATIONS CAN TAKE YEARS TO
EFFECTUATE
Foravarietyofreasons,theprocessofallocatingspectrumhastraditionallytakenfiveormore
yearstocomplete. IntheUnitedStates,forexample,themajorbandsformobilebroadband
servicehavetakenanywherefromsixtothirteenyearstocompletethereallocationprocess,as
illustratedinthechartbelow.
Band First Step Available for Use Approximate Time Lag
Cellular (Advanced Mobile Phone System) 1970 1981 11 years
PCS 1989 1995 6 years
Educational Broadband Service (EBS)Broadband Radio Service (BRS)
1996 2006 10 years
700 MHz 1996 2009 13 years
AWS-1 2000 2006 6 years
[Source: FCCBroadbandPlan,March2010]
Whilecircumstanceswillcertainlyvarybycountryandbyspectrumband,onecanreasonably
conclude from prior history and current circumstances that the process will unfold generally
along similarly timescales and certainly so if the process to identify spectrum for mobile
broadbandisnotundertakenwithakeensenseofurgency.
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4.3.1 ILLUSTRATIONS
Mexico
On 2 September 2010, Mexican President Felipe Caldern issued a decree to accelerate the
countrys
transition
from
analog
to
digital
TV,
freeing
up
700
MHz
frequencies
currently
used
by
broadcasterswiththeintentiontoauctionthisspectrumby2012. Underthedecree,allanalog
TVtransmissionsaretomigratefullytodigitalstandardsby2015,sixyearsaheadoftheoriginal
plan. Cofetel has been instructed to auction the 700 MHz band for next generation mobile
broadbandservices,withpreliminaryexpectationsofUS$10billioninauctionreceipts. Mexico
isthefirstcountryinLatinAmericatoannounceaDigitalDividendspectrumauctionandunder
its proposed schedule will also be the first country in the region to conclude the analog
transition.
Moreover,inearlyJanuary2011,Cofetelannouncedthatitwasworkingtorelease300MHzof
spectrumfromthe700MHz,1.7/2.1GHz,and3.43.7GHzbandswithintwentyfourmonths.
Thiswouldbethemostambitiousprogramtoreleasespectrumeverconducted,andwould if
accomplishedresultinadoublingofthespectrumcurrentlydedicatedtowirelessservices.42
Brazil
OnDecember2010Anatelconcludedtheauctionofaleftoverblockof20MHzofthe1.9/2.1
GHz band which was initially auctioned in December 2007. The amount received by the
government for this auction was US $ 1.7 billion dollars for 13 lots of the so called HBand.
Eleven(Lots14,67and913)ofthethirteenlotswerewonbyNextelBrasil,onelot(#5) by
CTBC,andanotherlot(#7)byTIM.
42http://eleconomista.com.mx/industrias/2011/01/05/avanzaplancadenastv
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5. CLOSING CONSIDERATIONS Mobile broadband in the Americas is in a delicate state. On the one hand, the growth in
subscribershiphasbeenphenomenal,amobilemiracleinthewordsoftheITU. Ontheother
hand, the industry lacks sufficient incremental supply of one of its essential raw materials
spectrum. Our review of the literature leads us to the conclusion that mobile broadband
networks will hit capacity shortages by the middle of the decade unless steps are taken tosecuretheadditionalspectrumneeded.
Such steps need to be taken today to avoid these risks. The industry has a long history of
drivinginnovationinradioaccesstechnologies,fromEDGEthroughHSPAtoLTE,allowingitto
exploitspectrumassetsasintensivelyaspossible. Inparallel,theindustryhasinvestedbillions
inbuildingcellsitestoenhancenetworkcoverageandcapacity. Suchstepswillcontinuetobe
needed,andthereisnoindicationofdeploymentslowing.
Atthesametime,incrementalspectrumallocationsformobilebroadbandarevital. Countries
mustbeginnow, iftheyhavenotdonesoalready,toplanforthefuture inordertopreserve
thepromiseofthemobilemiracle. Historically,spectrumallocationscantakeatleast5years,
andoftenlonger,toimplement.
4G Americas offers the following guideposts to help stakeholders in the region in working
togethertosecureabrightmobilebroadbandtomorrow.
1. WellConsideredSpectrumAllocationPoliciesareImperative
A. ConfigureLicenseswithWiderBandwidthsB. GroupLikeServicesTogetherC. BeMindfulofGlobalStandardsD. PursueHarmonized/ContiguousSpectrumAllocationsE. ExhaustExclusiveUseOptionsBeforePursuingSharedUseF. NotAllSpectrumisFungibleAlignAllocationwithDemand
2. Marketorientedspectrumassignmentapproachesworkspectrumcaps
shouldbedisfavored.
3. Thereisnotimetolosespectrumallocationscantakeyearstoeffectuate.
4GAmericas,aswellasitsmembercompanies,standpreparedtoaidstakeholdersinthe
regioninsecuringthepromiseofmobilebroadband.
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6. APPENDICES
6. 1 ABBREVIATIONS
3GPP
Third
Generation
Partnership
Project
ANATELAgnciaNacionaldeTelecomunicaes(Braziliantelecomregulator)
AUAntennaUnit
Bits/s/HzBitsperSecondperHertz,ameasureofspectralefficiency
bpsBitsperSecond
CAGRCompoundAnnualGrowthRate
CAPEXCapitalExpenditure
CDMACodeDivisionMultipleAccess
CFC ComisinFederaldeCompetencia(competitionagencyinMexico)
COFETEL ComisinFederaldeTelecommunicaciones(telecomregulatorinMexico)
CRTC CanadianRadioandTelecommunicationsCommission
dBDecibel
dBmDecibelratioofwattsto1milliwatt
ECEuropeanCommission
EDGEEnhancedDataRatesforGSMEvolution
EUEuropeanUnion
FCCFederalCommunicationsCommission
FDDFrequencyDivisionDuplex
FEMFrontEndModule
FTPFileTransferProtocol
GBGigabyte
Gbps
Gigabits
per
Second
GGSNGatewayGPRSSupportNode
GHzGigahertz
GPRSGeneralPacketRadioService
GSMGlobalSystemforMobilecommunications
GSMAGSMAssociation
HSPAHighSpeedPacketAccess(HSDPAwithHSUPA)
HSPA+HighSpeedPacketAccessPlus(alsoknownasHSPAEvolutionorEvolvedHSPA)
HzHertz
ICIndustryCanada
IMTInternationalMobileTelecommunications
IMTAIMTAdvanced
IPInternetProtocol
ITUInternationalTelecommunicationsUnion
KbpsKilobitsperSecond
LTELongTermEvolution(evolvedairinterfacebasedonOFDMA)
LTEALTEAdvanced
M2MMachinetoMachine
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MbpsMegabitsperSecond
MHzMegahertz
MIMOMultipleInput/MultipleOutput
msMillisecond
OBIFCCsOmnibusBroadbandInitiative
OFCOMU.K.communicationsregulatoryauthority
OFDMOrthogonalFrequencyDivisionMultiplexing
OFDMAOrthogonalFrequencyDivisionMultipleAccess(airinterface)
OPEXOperatingExpenses
P2PPeertoPeer
RANRadioAccessNetwork
Rel.XRelease99,Release4,Release5,etc.of3GPPStandards
RFRadioFrequency
RXReceive
RNCRadioNetworkController
RRURemoteRadioUnit
SAESystemArchitectureEvolution,alsoknownasEPC
SGSNServingGPRSSupportNode
SNRSignaltoNoiseRatio
TETerminalEquipment
TXTransmit
UEUserEquipment
ULUplink
UMTSUniversalMobileTelecommunicationsSystem
UNCTADUnitedNationsConferenceonTradeandDevelopment
WANWideAreaNetwork
WWWWorldWideWeb
WiMAXWorldwideInteroperabilityforMicrowaveAccess
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6. 2 SELECTEDREFERENCES
Akamai,StateoftheInternetQ32010(January2011),availablewithfreeregistrationat
http://www.akamai.com/stateoftheinternet/
AllotCommunications,MobileTrendsReportH22010(8February2011),availablewithfree
registrationathttp://www.allot.com/index.aspx?id=4070&fileID=3710
Berry,HonigandVohra,SpectrumMarkets: Motivations,Challenges&Implications(IEEE
CommunicationsMagazine,November2010).
CiscoVisualNetworkingIndex:GlobalMobileDataTrafficForecastUpdate,201015(1
February2011),
http://www.cisco.com/en/US/solutions/collateral/ns341/ns525/ns537/ns705/ns827/white
_paper_c11520862.pdf
FCC,NationalBroadbandPlan,Chapter5:Spectrum(March2010),
http://www.broadband.gov/plan/5spectrum/#_edn67
FCC,OBITechnicalPaperNo.6,MobileBroadband: theBenefitsofAdditionalSpectrum(21
October2010), http://download.broadband.gov/plan/thebroadbandavailabilitygapobi
technicalpaperno1.pdf
ITU,EstimatedSpectrumBandwidthRequirementsfortheFutureDevelopmentofIMT2000
andIMTAdvanced,ReportITURM.2078(2006).
NGMNAlliance,SpectrumRequirementsfortheNextGenerationofMobileNetworks(20
June2007),
http://www.ngmn.org/uploads/media/Spectrum_Requirements_for_the_Next_Gener