Low-Power Solution To Spectrum Issue

The CTIA, the trade group for wireless service providers, and the Consumer Electronics Association have come up with what they believe is a win-win solution to the tug of war now being waged over broadcast spectrum. The trade groups proposed a new "architecture" for broadcasting in which stations with high-power transmitters and tall towers would be replaced by stations with networks of low-power "distributed transmitters" — otherwise known as distributed transmission systems (DTS) or single frequency networks (SFN). "The goal ... would be to free up spectrum by grouping full-power TV licensees into a smaller portion of the existing television broadcast band and reducing the spectrum separations between licensees," the group said. The approach would free up 100-180 MHz of spectrum for wireless broadband use with a value of between $35 billion and $70 billion, they claimed, and the move — and the spectrum savings — could be made with minimal disruption to broadcasting or over-the-air viewers, they said. Each station would still have full use of 6 MHz of spectrum and the associated 19.4 Mbps data stream so it could continue to offer HD, mobile DTV and other ancillary digital services. And by moving to DTS, a station may improve its coverage and quality of service, they added. The cost of transitioning to the new architecture — as much as $1.85 billion by their reckoning — would be borne not by the broadcasters, but by the buyers of the freed-up spectrum, presumably wireless broadband users. Consumers, meanwhile, would continue to enjoy the same over-the-air service that they now do without having to purchase new TV sets or converter boxes. (12/24)