The histories of spectrum policy and the mobile industry are closely intertwined. Much of the news in radio spectrum is driven by the stakeholders with the deepest pockets: mobile operators. Mobile operators' business strategies and technology focusses vary, but they all need spectrum. How they obtain that spectrum depends on… Read more...

This week the European Commission announced a forthcoming workshop on the use of sub-700 MHz band spectrum in the EU. According to the agenda, the Commission is interested in knowing about international developments in the band (i.e. mobile broadband), as well as the evolution of Digital Terrestrial Television (DTT) and… Read more...

International spectrum policy largely operates within the framework of the "WRC cycle". The cycle comprises preparations for, and negotiations at, the World Radiocommunication Conference (WRC), the forum that reviews the international framework for the spectrum management (Radio Regulations) every three to four years. The process, as the ITU-R would probably… Read more...

PolicyTracker is delighted to announce the publication of a new collection of essays featuring several of our staff and many well-known names in the spectrum policy world. The Debates Shaping Spectrum Policy is published by the Taylor and Francis Group and is available in hardback or as an ebook. From… Read more...

The Radio Regulations, the UN level treaty document that provides a framework for global spectrum management, is up for review at the end of next year at the World Radiocommunication Conference (WRC-23). Although the Radio Regulations are sometimes ignored, the process of agreeing possible amendments forms a key part of… Read more...

A surprise outcome of WRC-15 was that it declined to set up an agenda item at WRC-19 that could allow mobile broadband to operate in the 28 GHz band. Instead, studies for WRC-19 on IMT (ITU-R parlance for mobile broadband), focussed on different mmWave bands, particularly 26 GHz. Several countries,… Read more...

One of the great advantages of the mmWave bands are their wide bandwidths. Propagation may be limited, but at least you have plenty of spectrum to use. But is this always true? The GSMA, which represents mobile operators, suggests that 800 MHz is a good amount of mmWave spectrum to… Read more...

ANFR, the French spectrum management agency, regularly publishes information about exposure to electromagnetic fields (EMF). Ofcom in the UK and other administrations are carrying out similar work. They hope that this will help to reassure people that 5G is not a health risk. But Gilles Brégant, the head of ANFR,… Read more...

The new iteration of the PolicyTracker Spectrum Database includes spectrum assignment information from 16 countries Two Portuguese-speaking countries provided the locations for the most notable spectrum auctions that concluded in Q4 2021. The results from these auctions, and other changes to spectrum allocations and assignments, are included in the new… Read more...

Although the current 5G focus is firmly on mid-bands such as 3.3 - 3.8 GHz, high-bands such as the 26 GHz and 28 GHz will surely play an important role in bringing 5G's true potential to fruition. Indeed, billions of dollars and thousands of billable hours have been spent on… Read more...