The text of the judgement is here:
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Thursday, January 31, 2008
Newsflash: Italian TV band allocations ruled unlawful
The European court of justice has ruled that Italy has breached community law by giving a TV company a broadcasting licence but failing to give it a frequency allocation.
Wednesday, January 30, 2008
Interest mounts in new director of ITU radio bureau
There is speculation about who might take over when Valery Timofeev steps down in two years time.
The director of the ITU's Radiocommunication Bureau (BR) is the only one of five elected posts in ITU that will be up for election in 2010 because of term limitations.
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Tuesday, January 29, 2008
February 2008 printed issue available for download
Our top story this month is an analysis of the auctions taking place in key mobile and wireless broadband frequencies this year.
Also in this issue we look at national reactions to the WAPECS generic licensing proposals; discussions about harmonised bands for cognitive and software-defined radio at WRC-11; and progress towards sharing military spectrum.
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Consultation: Withdrawal of ERC/DEC/(01)04, ERC/DEC/(01)09, ERC/DEC/(01)13, ERC/DEC/(01)15 and ERC/DEC/(01)18
ERO is inviting views on the withdrawal of four ERC Decisions regulating the harmonisation and unlicensed status of short range devices. These have become obsolete following the adoption of harmonised standards by ETSI and the inclusion of these Decisions in annexes to ERC Recommendation 70-03.
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Friday, January 25, 2008
Countries adopting different timetables for WAPECS
The WAPECs generic licensing framework should pass its final hurdle in a few weeks but adoption across the member states looks likely to be gradual and patchy. Further work is also needed to apply the concept beyond 3.4GHz and 2.6GHz.
With the process of getting WAPECS (Wireless Access Platforms for Electronic Communication Services) formally approved at EC level moving quickly ahead, member states are adopting different approaches to generic licensing.
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Thursday, January 24, 2008
Digital dividend goes on sale in the US
The long-awaited 700MHz auction in the US, often hyped up as the "100-year auction" kicks off today (January 24) amid intense speculation and not a little controversy.
The UHF spectrum in the 698MHz to 806MHz range has been divided into five blocks, A to E, with 1,099 regional licences up for grabs with a total minimum reserve price of US$10bn. The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has approved 214 applicants to bid, each having made the required upfront payment by the January 4 deadline.
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Tuesday, January 22, 2008
German spectrum auctions plans mired in dispute
Regulator BNetzA has proposed auctioning spectrum in the 1.8GHz, 2GHz and 2.6GHz bands for digital cellular mobile communications. But criticism of its regulatory approach has sparked lawsuits that appear to be slowing progress.
BNetzA's 26 September 2007 draft decision on definitions and rules calls for frequencies to be awarded without restriction on the use of specific technologies. The decision "neither privileges the incumbent 2G and 3G licensees nor privileges potential newcomers," a spokesman said.
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Wednesday, January 16, 2008
Consultation: Spectrum Usage Rights (SURs)
The consultation invites comments on further ways of modelling whether licensees have kept within the terms of their SURs. These new types of modelling relate to the following situations:
* From one downlink to another adjacent downlink.
* From one uplink to another adjacent uplink.
* From one downlink to an adjacent uplink.
* From one uplink to an adjacent downlink.
The consultation also argues that combinations of these modelling types can cover situations such as the use of Time Division Duplex (TDD) technology.
* From one downlink to another adjacent downlink.
* From one uplink to another adjacent uplink.
* From one downlink to an adjacent uplink.
* From one uplink to an adjacent downlink.
The consultation also argues that combinations of these modelling types can cover situations such as the use of Time Division Duplex (TDD) technology.
Read the full details at:
Tuesday, January 15, 2008
Cognitive radio and optical links on the agenda for WRC-2001
ITU-R study groups are to examine the implications of these two technologies which could revolutionize the broadband market, as well as considering how the radio regulations should deal with convergence.
The agenda for the next World Radio Conference is studied closely to for indications of where the industry is heading. The recognition that a conference can give to new technologies is an important factor in any eventual success, just as end to protection previously enjoyed by current services may upset existing business models.
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Friday, January 11, 2008
2008 to set the mould for spectrum auctions
PolicyTracker estimates at least 15 auctions of bands crucial to the future of broadband wireless and mobile services will be held this year. These could answer key questions about pricing and the TDD/FDD split.
Spectrum auctions in Europe this year could provide useful clues for regulators eyeing future awards, analysts say. Upcoming auctions of 2.6GHz spectrum in the UK, Austria and Sweden, together with the recently concluded Norwegian auction, will give other countries a better idea of the market value of the frequency and the most appropriate split between Frequency Division Duplex (FDD) and Time Division Duplex (TDD) spectrum is, said Analysys consultant Lee Sanders.
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Thursday, January 10, 2008
Mobile phones on aircraft: Air France begins first international trial
AirFrance is using the OnAir system to test the use of mobile data services on flights to Poland. A voice trial is due to start shortly.
The world's first international trial of a mobile phone service on aircraft is proving very popular with passengers according to Air France. The trial service, which is initially data only, kicked off on December 17 using OnAir equipment installed on an Airbus A318 Air France flight between Paris and Warsaw, overflying Switzerland and Germany.
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Monday, January 07, 2008
2007 Review - WRC-07 scores landmark agreements for WiMAX and new mobile spectrum
Four years of research and planning conducted by a variety of ITU study groups and working parties came to fruition in November with the World Radio Conference meeting in Geneva (WRC-07).
There were several important achievements at WRC-07 and its pre-meetings, the first being the admittance of mobile WiMAX to the IMT2000 family of technologies able to use spectrum identified for 3G. This followed a year of meetings in ITU SG8, including a special meeting which had to be called in order for the ratification procedures to be completed before the conference.
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Friday, January 04, 2008
2007 Review -Mobiles on aircraft becoming a reality
While authorities in the US remain opposed to using mobiles on aircraft, 2007 saw marked progress being made in Europe and the Asia Pacific with several trial runs launched, the first by Australian national operator Qantas in April.
There are only two serious competitors in the provision of mobile services on aircraft, British companies OnAir and AeroMobile and both have been busy last year and this lobbying telecoms and aviation regulators throughout Europe and Asia.
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2007 Review - Unexpected curve ball from MEPs over repeal of GSM directive
While there are minefields to be negotiated to refarm 2G spectrum for 3G nobody thought that getting the European Parliament to sign off on the deal would be one of them.
The main problem facing regulators was devising the formula which would take into account Hutchison's operations in several countries. Having come in as purely a 3G operator, and paid large sums of money for 2100MHz spectrum, the 3 operation has had to build out grassroots UMTS networks at further large expense. If existing 2G operators are allowed to refarm their 2G spectrum and recycle their 2G infrastructures they will be at a huge financial advantage, Hutchison argues.
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2007 Review - Difficulties in dicing up the digital dividend
Looming over the world of spectrum this year in Europe, and much of the rest of the world, has been the Digital Dividend.
Because of both the amount of spectrum which will be freed up when analogue television signals are switched off, and the desirability of UHF spectrum for a variety of applications, how to dice up the dividend is a highly contentious issue at both the member state and Europe-wide levels.
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