Rural broadband initiatives to get boost from spectrum offering

Industry Canada has kicked off a first-come, first-serve licensing process for analog TV spectrum to be used for fixed broadband connectivity in remote rural parts of the country. With many parts of rural Canada still lacking high-speed Internet access, this spectrum (512-698 MHz) is critical to bringing broadband to Canadians otherwise living on the wrong side of the digital divide.Peter Hill, director of spectrum management operations at Industry Canada, tells Report on Wireless that the department has already received several applications from companies across the country. "They’re now seeing how they fit the final licensing procedures and policy and technical guidelines," he adds. Hill doesn’t foresee any problems in licensing a number of companies to provide Internet access services. As long as the applicant meets the technical requirements, is a Canadian owned and controlled company, and pays the licence fee, the department is going to hand the licence over to the applicant, he explains. The licensing policy designates analog TV channels 25, 34, 35 and 43 as the preferred channels available, but is open to licensing other channels in the 21 to 51 range if there won’t be any interference with existing broadcasting services. Hill says these four channels were chosen after some complex calculations, noting that they were the most widely available across the country. He doesn’t rule out the licensing of other channels in this range, but only if it can be determined that existing and planned broadcasting services won’t experience interference. Hill suggests that if four companies are licensed in one area, but a fifth carrier comes in after the fact, the department will try to find a fifth channel to accommodate that provider. But, he adds, there is no guarantee that an additional channel will be found. According to the policy document, the spectrum can only be used to provide Internet access to consumers and businesses in remote rural parts of the country. Hill says this eliminates the use of the bandwidth for private networks. As well, the department is providing applicants with the flexibility to implement technologies that they believe to best suit their needs. Companies that decide to deploy equipment using time division duplex technology only require a single licence, while those opting for frequency division duplex, which requires the use of two channels, will need two licences. The 512-698 MHz spectrum is yet another piece of Canada’s airwaves that is supposed to improve the connectivity requirements of remote rural residents and businesses. Industry Canada has licensed spectrum in the 2.5 GHz range to Inukshuk Internet Inc. and SaskTel as well as 2.3 GHz and 3.5 GHz spectrum to several companies in two spectrum auctions.

Rural broadband initiatives to get boost from spectrum offering

News | March 12, 2007

Unlock all the Canadian telecom, broadcasting and digital media news you need.

FREE TRIAL

SUBSCRIBE

Inside The Wire Report

Information

Hill Times Publishing

Get in Touch With Us