Education / Overview
The Communications Act of 1934 established the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) as an independent regulatory agency with jurisdiction over non-federal spectrum use. Federal spectrum use is regulated by the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA), a branch of the U.S. Department of Commerce.
Frequency Allocation Chart
Akin to real estate, spectrum is categorized and subdivided by frequency and geography. The FCC issues individual licenses based on the U.S. Frequency Allocation Table, which is similar to that of a zoning map issued by a municipality. Some allocations may exist in every geography within the United States or could be restricted to specific areas denoted within the FCC Rules. Each geographic area, such as New York City and Los Angeles, may have thousands of individual licenses and owners.
Primary markets
The FCC issues licenses on a Site-Specific or Market Area basis. Site-Specific licenses are bounded by the coverage radius of a transmitter. Market-Based licenses are defined by a county or group of counties. The FCC ushered in a new era of spectrum ownership when it conducted the first ever spectrum auction, for Personal Communications Services (PCS), Auction #1, in July of 1994. We refer to license holders who received their licenses first-hand via FCC Auctions or Site-Specific Applications as the Primary Market license holders.
FCC Secondary Market Initiative - In 2003 the FCC issued its First Report and Order and Further Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (FCC 03-113) that effectively paved the way for wireless spectrum leasing. Licensees may now lease spectrum and shift spectrum ownership responsibilities to the Lessee. This landmark initiative also enables spectrum seekers the ability to lease spectrum in many more parts of the spectrum allocation chart. For example, WiMAX provider Clearwire operates on spectrum leased from educational and religious institutions--spectrum they would have been ineligible to operate.