Genachowski addresses "looming crisis" in wireless spectrum

FCC chief also touches on net neutrality, Fairness Doctrine at CES

During a wide-ranging question-and-answer session at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) Friday, FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski vowed to explore every option available to help open up more spectrum for wireless companies.

Genachowski acknowledged during the session that there was a significant gap between future demand for mobile data services and the spectrum that would be available to meet that demand. However, he also said that the FCC wouldn't only look into freeing up additional spectrum for use but at improving efficiencies in how spectrum is used both at the device and the software level.

"The data show that there's a looming crisis," he said. "Tackling spectrum challenges will mean moving simultaneously on several fronts."

Best of CES gadgets slideshow

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During a wide-ranging question-and-answer session at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) Friday, FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski vowed to explore every option available to help open up more spectrum for wireless companies.

Genachowski acknowledged during the session that there was a significant gap between future demand for mobile data services and the spectrum that would be available to meet that demand. However, he also said that the FCC wouldn't only look into freeing up additional spectrum for use but at improving efficiencies in how spectrum is used both at the device and the software level.

"The data show that there's a looming crisis," he said. "Tackling spectrum challenges will mean moving simultaneously on several fronts."

Best of CES gadgets slideshow

The last two major actions the FCC took on spectrum came while previous FCC chairman Kevin Martin was still in charge. In early 2008, the commission auctioned off large chunks of spectrum located on the 700MHz band, the most valuable of which were scooped up by Verizon. Later in the year, the FCC voted unanimously to authorize the unlicensed use of so-called "white space" spectrum that had been abandoned by television broadcasters during the transition to digital television.

Even so, this hasn't quenched carriers' thirst for more spectrum, especially as they make the transition to more high-speed 4G data technologies such as WiMAX and LTE. Genachowski acknowledged that it would be difficult to find sufficient spectrum to use for data services in the future since basic physics limits the amount of usable spectrum.

"There's not enough spectrum for us as country to do what we need to do," he said.

Genachowski also touched on several other topics during his chat. He reaffirmed his support for network neutrality and said that it was the key to ensuring that the Internet remain both open and competitive. The FCC approved a notice of proposed rule making for net neutrality last fall and has set a deadline of Jan. 14 for all parties to file comments on the rules.

Genachowski also emphasized the importance of wide broadband adoption to the future of American workers, since so many job openings are now posted solely on the Web. He said that in addition to knowledge of reading, writing and mathematics, all students graduating from American schools should have at least a basic understanding of digital communications.

"More and more it's becoming the case that if you don't have the Internet you can't find a job," he said. "If we graduate students without basic digital skills then we're not preparing them for the economy."

And finally, Genachowski said that the so-called "Fairness Doctrine," which used to be used by the FCC to mandate that all radio and television broadcasters give equal time to two sides of a given debate, would remain "dead."

Read more about wireless & mobile in Network World's Wireless & Mobile section.