Spectrum management

The spectrum is a conceptual tool used to organize and map the physical phenomena of electromagnetic waves. These waves propagate through space at different frequencies, and the set of all possible frequencies is called the "electromagnetic spectrum". The term "radio spectrum" typically refers to the full frequency range from 3 kHz to 300 GHz that may be used for wireless communication. By contrast, "radio waves" are sometimes defined to be only those electromagnetic waves with frequencies between 30 kHz to 3 GHz (LF to UHF). Thus the full "radio" spectrum includes ELF waves and microwaves in particular.

Criticism of Current Spectrum Management in the United States

Wireless (RF or radio) spectrum management in the United States should be a cooperative exercise in balancing disparate stakeholder interests through effective user education and the enforcement of regulatory policies and rules that reflect practical reality, political responsibility, economic common sense, and, an understanding of the laws of physics. Unfortunately, this is not the case. Fact|date=October 2008

There is no concise, up-to-date, national radio/RF/wireless spectrum management policy practiced by the FCC and/or the NTIA in the U.S today. In addition, either very out-dated, convoluted, complex or very lax or non-existent regulation (often determined by the agendas of political and special interest groups more than by anything else) is the norm, with little effective enforcement of spectrum use rules. Fact|date=October 2008

GAO Report on Spectrum Management (2004)

Excerpt:

Quote|The current structure and management of spectrum use in the United States does not encourage the development and use of some spectrum efficient technologies. Because the spectrum allocation framework largely compartmentalizes spectrum by types of services (such as aeronautical radio navigation) and users (federal, non-federal, and shared), the capability of emerging technologies designed to use spectrum in different ways is often diminished. For example, software-defined cognitive radios — radios that adapt their use of the spectrum to the real-time conditions of their operating environments — could be used to sense unused frequencies, or “white spaces,” and automatically make use of those frequencies. It may also be possible to use software-defined cognitive radios to exploit “gray spaces” in the spectrum — areas where emissions exist yet could still accommodate additional users without creating a level of interference that is unacceptableto incumbent users — to increase spectrum efficiency. Currently, however, the spectrum allocation system may not provide the freedom needed for these technologies to operate across existing spectrum designations, and defining new rules requires knowledge about spectrum that spectrum leaders do not have. At the same time, there are few federal regulatory requirements and incentives to use spectrum more efficiently. While the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) isresponsible for managing the federal government’s use of spectrum and ensuring spectrum efficiency, NTIA primarily relies on individual agencies to ensure that the systems they develop are as spectrum efficient as possible. Agencies’ guidance and policies, however, do not require systematicconsideration of spectrum efficiency in their acquisitions. The lack of economic consequence associated with the manner in which spectrum is used has also provided little incentive to agencies to pursue opportunities proactively to develop and use technologies that would improve spectrumefficiency government-wide. (GAO-04-666 http://www.gao.gov/new.items/d04666.pdf)

pectrum Commons Theory

Under US law, the spectrum is not considered to be the property of the private sector nor of the government except insofar as the term "government" is used to be synonymous with "the people". Fact|date=October 2008

The original use of the term "the commons" was the practice by which the public at large had a limited access to a bundle of rights regarding use of the commons; each person then had an interest in his own usage rights but the commons themselves were not property, nor were the rights "property" since they could not be traded. The term "tragedy of the commons" was popularized by Garrett Hardin in a 1968 article which appeared in "Science Magazine". The tragedy of the commons illustrates the philosophy that destructive use of public reservations ("the commons") by private interests can result when the best strategy for individuals conflicts with the "common good". In such a scenario, it asserts that even though the contribution of each "bad actor" may be minute, if summed over all bad actors the resource could be degraded to the point of uselessness. This concern has led to the regulation of the spectrum. Fact|date=October 2008

Domestic U.S. Regulatory Agencies

The Communications Act of 1934 grants authority for spectrum management to the President for all federal use (47 USC 305). The National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) manages the spectrum for the Federal Government. Its rules are found in the "Manual of Regulations & Procedures for Federal Radio Frequency Management".

The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) manages and regulates all domestic non-federal spectrum use (47 USC 301). Its rules can be found here: http://wireless.fcc.gov/index.htm?job=rules_and_regulations

Background:
*Radio Act of 1927
*Communications Act of 1934
*Administrative Procedures Act of 1947
*Satellite Act of 1962
*National Telecommunications and Information Administration – 1978
*Negotiated Rulemaking Act of 1990
*Cable TV Consumer Protection & Competition Act of 1992
*Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1993
*Telecommunications Act of 1996

International Spectrum Management

The International Telecommunications Union (ITU) is the part of the United Nations (UN) that manages the use of both the RF Spectrum and space satellites among nation states.

ee also

*Federal Communications Commission
*Frequency assignment