Fwd: [TIER] UN agreement on freeing spectrum for wireless
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From: Jennifer Bussell <jbussell@berkeley.edu> Date: 19 November 2007 19:54:38 GMT+03:00 To: TIER <tier@tier.cs.berkeley.edu> Subject: [TIER] UN agreement on freeing spectrum for wireless
http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/2ece0dd2-962c-11dc-b7ec-0000779fd2ac.html Radio spectrum freed for mobiles By Frances Williams in Geneva Published: November 19 2007 01:23 | Last updated: November 19 2007 01:23 Valuable radio spectrum now used mainly by broadcasters is to be opened up to broadband services offered by mobile phone operators under a United Nations agreement endorsed on Friday by governments from over 160 countries.
For the first time, the decision will provide a common chunk of spectrum for mobile broadband services globally, boosting the market for new wireless technologies. It is also expected to reduce significantly the cost of expanding mobile networks in poor or predominantly rural nations.
The accord follows a month-long diplomatic conference that pitted traditional broadcasters against mobile phone operators in a battle over who should benefit from the “digital dividend” provided by the continuing switch from analogue to digital television.
Digital signals require much less bandwidth, freeing space in the coveted ultra-high frequency (UHF) band, which has been the almost exclusive preserve of broadcasters.
Mobile phone companies have pushed for access to the UHF band for two reasons. One is that the quality signals support high-speed mobile broadband connections, enabling faster downloads of data and video to mobile devices and encouraging the development of new internet-based services.
The other is that UHF signals can penetrate buildings and travel long distances, so fewer base stations are required for coverage of large areas, cheapening the cost of rolling out wireless broadband networks.
Under the deal, the Americas and much of Asia, including China and India, will open up the 698-806 Megahertz band to mobile wireless broadband services between now and 2015 as the transition from analogue to digital television proceeds.
In Europe, Africa and the Middle East, where broadcasters have retained a bigger share of UHF spectrum, only the 790-862 Megahertz band will be available for mobile wireless broadband and not before 2015.
Copyright The Financial Times Limited 2007
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Eric M.K Osiakwan Executive Secretary AfrISPA (www.afrispa.org) Tel: + 233.21.258800 ext 2031 Fax: + 233.21.258811 Cell: + 233.244.386792 Handle: eosiakwan Snail Mail: Pmb 208, Accra-North Office: BusyInternet - 42 Ring Road Central, Accra-North Blog: http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/eric/ Slang: "Tomorrow Now"
Interesting This was a topic of an interesting debate at one of the sessions at the recently concluded IGF in Rio. With broadcasters trying to claim the spectrum. However it's a pitty that in Africa where we need this capacity more we have chosen to wait till 2015. From: Discuss-owner@afrispa.org [mailto:Discuss-owner@afrispa.org] On Behalf Of Eric Osiakwan Sent: Tuesday, November 20, 2007 7:57 AM To: discuss@afrispa.org; African Information Society Initiative - Discussion Forum; KICTAnet ICT Policy Discussions Subject: [AfrISPA.Discuss] Fwd: [TIER] UN agreement on freeing spectrum for wireless fyi Begin forwarded message: From: Jennifer Bussell <jbussell@berkeley.edu> Date: 19 November 2007 19:54:38 GMT+03:00 To: TIER <tier@tier.cs.berkeley.edu> Subject: [TIER] UN agreement on freeing spectrum for wireless http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/2ece0dd2-962c-11dc-b7ec-0000779fd2ac.html Radio spectrum freed for mobiles By Frances Williams in Geneva Published: November 19 2007 01:23 | Last updated: November 19 2007 01:23 Valuable radio spectrum now used mainly by broadcasters is to be opened up to broadband services offered by mobile phone operators under a United Nations agreement endorsed on Friday by governments from over 160 countries. For the first time, the decision will provide a common chunk of spectrum for mobile broadband services globally, boosting the market for new wireless technologies. It is also expected to reduce significantly the cost of expanding mobile networks in poor or predominantly rural nations. The accord follows a month-long diplomatic conference that pitted traditional broadcasters against mobile phone operators in a battle over who should benefit from the "digital dividend" provided by the continuing switch from analogue to digital television. Digital signals require much less bandwidth, freeing space in the coveted ultra-high frequency (UHF) band, which has been the almost exclusive preserve of broadcasters. Mobile phone companies have pushed for access to the UHF band for two reasons. One is that the quality signals support high-speed mobile broadband connections, enabling faster downloads of data and video to mobile devices and encouraging the development of new internet-based services. The other is that UHF signals can penetrate buildings and travel long distances, so fewer base stations are required for coverage of large areas, cheapening the cost of rolling out wireless broadband networks. Under the deal, the Americas and much of Asia, including China and India, will open up the 698-806 Megahertz band to mobile wireless broadband services between now and 2015 as the transition from analogue to digital television proceeds. In Europe, Africa and the Middle East, where broadcasters have retained a bigger share of UHF spectrum, only the 790-862 Megahertz band will be available for mobile wireless broadband and not before 2015. Copyright <http://www.ft.com/servicestools/help/copyright> The Financial Times Limited 2007 _______________________________________________ TIER mailing list Website: http://tier.cs.berkeley.edu TIER@tier.cs.berkeley.edu https://www.millennium.berkeley.edu/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/tier Eric M.K Osiakwan Executive Secretary AfrISPA (www.afrispa.org) Tel: + 233.21.258800 ext 2031 Fax: + 233.21.258811 Cell: + 233.244.386792 Handle: eosiakwan Snail Mail: Pmb 208, Accra-North Office: BusyInternet - 42 Ring Road Central, Accra-North Blog: http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/eric/ Slang: "Tomorrow Now"
participants (2)
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Badru Ntege -
Eric Osiakwan