TPRC 2024: The 52nd Research Conference on Communications, Information and Inter

Link to paper

Abstract:
The National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) at the Department of Commerce recently published its National Spectrum Strategy (NSS) along with an implementation plan. The NSS points to particular bands that may be suitable for either repurposing or sharing with other applications, totaling 2790 MHz. These bands include 3.1-3.45 GHz, assigned for use by the Department of Defense; 7.125-8.4 GHz, allocated to a variety of space-based communications systems and other applications; and 37-37.6 GHz, considered for shared use between Federal and non-Federal users. The NSS raises several questions about possible ways in which those bands might be reconfigured for a broader range of applications. We first summarize the four main pillars in the NSS, and then give a retrospective on past spectrum planning efforts, going back several decades. From that review we outline suggestions for future policy decisions concerning spectrum access rights.

Coexistence, and in particular, primary-secondary sharing, plays a key role in the NSS approach. Determining a priori what applications may reasonably coexist with incumbents in particular bands is treated primarily as a technical question, requiring measurements to assess the potential for “harmful” interference. We discuss potential benefits and limitations of measurements and associated measurement testbeds, to be developed as part of the NSS. While field measurements may provide some information about spectrum utilization, welfare maximization requires an assessment of economic value. Stakeholders and incumbents, in particular, may not have an incentive to reveal that information to regulators. Measurement testbeds can help to expand the range of possible conflict-mitigation mechanisms as inputs to policy makers. However, testbed capabilities will also be shaped by stakeholder incentives (or lack thereof), leading to experimental limitations in terms of both technologies and propagation scenarios that can be demonstrated. We include some recommendations concerning measurements and data collection as inputs to policy-makers that should help to minimize rigidities and associated inefficiencies with spectrum use.