Mid-band Spectrum: Transitioning the C-Band and More

Spectrum remains the lifeblood of wireless communications, but not all spectrum is the same. Low-band spectrum—with frequencies below 1 GHz—is the historic work-horse of mobile communications. It provides wide coverage areas with relatively little power, but with only so much to go around, capacity is limited. While there is recent excitement around the use of high-band spectrum above 24 GHz, the physics of these extremely high frequencies make for limited propagation and much more costly infrastructure.

Mid-band spectrum, on the other hand, is the goldilocks of frequencies—not too high, and not too low. Portions of this spectrum will be crucial for next-generation networks, and other nations are moving full steam ahead to allocate this spectrum for 5G services. The FCC is advancing on several fronts: making changes to the 3.5 GHz CBRS licenses, proposing methods to transition the so-called C-Band from satellite to terrestrial use, proposing to make room for unlicensed services in the 6 GHz band, potentially re-examining the upper portion of the 5 GHz band, among other efforts.

Please join as ITIF releases a report surveying these developments with a panel of experts to discuss mid-band spectrum policy. Of prominent interest to the panel is the C-band from 3.7 to 4.2 GHz. The question of how to effectively transition a portion of this spectrum from satellite distribution of television programming to wireless broadband looms large in spectrum policy today. Nearly every stakeholder across the communications landscape has an interest in the proceeding, and the FCC’s broad licensing authority gives them a wide range of options for how to move forward. Attend the event to learn about ITIF’s and other experts’ recommendations.

This event will be live streamed here.

Follow @ITIFdc and join the discussion on Twitter with the hashtag #ITIFspectrum.