Doug Lung / 11.29.2012 02:47PM
3.5 GHz Broadband Service on Agenda for Dec. 12 FCC Meeting
Last week the FCC released a tentative
agenda for its December 12 open meeting. The first item on the
agenda is “Enabling Spectrum Sharing and Small Cell Wireless Broadband Services
in the 3.5 GHz Band.” The Commission will consider a Notice of Proposed
Rulemaking “to broaden its initiatives in unleashing broadband spectrum,
promoting technological innovation, and encouraging investment via the creation
of a shared access broadband service in the 3550-3650 MHz band for small cell
use.”
This band
would be just below the 3.65 GHz band included in the new
IEEE 802.11-2012 wireless standard. C-band satellite
users have expressed concern about interference from wireless
use of the 3.65 GHz band.
While the proposed band will be 50 MHz from the 3.7-4.2 GHz
band used by most U.S. C-band downlinks, if 3.5 GHz transmitters are near
C-band receive sites, brute force overload interference may be a problem. The
50 MHz separation should make it easier to design filters to reduce or
eliminate the interference. Users of C-band satellites operating below 3.7 GHz
will have more difficulty eliminating interference, possibly requiring
exclusion zones similar to those required for use of the 3.65 GHz band. We'll
have to wait for the NPRM to see how the FCC will handle the potential
interference issues.