CEI Praises FCC Decision to Open Up Spectrum for Business Use

In an effort to make efficient and effective use of the nation’s spectrum resources, today the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) announced it will move forward on an application by Ligado Networks for valuable mid-band spectrum. Allowing use of the mid-range L-Band spectrum will help support 5G broadband networks and Internet of Things services. Patrick Hedger, a research fellow with CEI’s Center for Technology and Innovation, praised the FCC for taking action to help businesses succeed:

“Access to spectrum is crucial for our modern economy, connecting everything from radios, to cellphones, to satellites. But for too long, turf-wars between federal regulatory agencies have left spectrum bands largely unavailable for valuable commercial applications.

“Today’s FCC decision wrests spectrum away from bureaucratic waste and delivers it into the hands of people who will aide our economic recovery and resiliency in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic.”

As CEI has extensively documented through its #NeverNeeded campaign, removing government barriers must be a key response to the Covid-19 crisis.

CEI has previously voiced support for re-allocation of the L-Band, which is a main operating range used by radars, global positioning systems (GPS), radio, telecommunications, and aircraft surveillance. In addition, CEI submitted supporting comments on a similar FCC reallocation of the 5.9 GHz spectrum earlier this year.