The Federal Communications Commission is soliciting public comments on an IEEE-USA petition asking the federal government to classify frequency spectrum above 95 GHz as “a new technology or service.”
Such a declaratory ruling, according to IEEE-USA, would spur capital investment and lead to long-term commercial opportunities. A similar ruling 28 years ago cleared the way for development of Wi-Fi (IEEE 802.11), wireless technology that has transformed the way we live, work and communicate.
“We’re asking the FCC to set the stage for technology development that could have a big impact on the economy,” said Mike Marcus, chair of the IEEE-USA Committee on Communications Policy. “The absence of FCC service rules above 95 GHz leads to regulatory uncertainty and hesitancy on the part of venture capitalists and angel investors to invest in new technologies at that frequency spectrum.
“This deprives the public and private sectors of the potential benefits of innovative technologies.”
See IEEE-USA’s proposal at http://apps.fcc.gov/ecfs/comment/view;jsessionid=lJLRS65P36LldHbvQ123r92cp0T2cgj2w6fbNnLcqq1whhT6zB2c!-739454830!608620108?id=6017474704
Individuals or organizations wishing to comment can do so at http://apps.fcc.gov/ecfs/upload/display?z=oqeed. The proceeding number is 13-259, and the comment deadline is 2 December 2013.