Last week, FCC Chairman Kevin Martin announced he would back a proposal at next month’s open commission meeting to allow unlicensed white space devices to operate in spectrum currently reserved for DTV transmission, wireless mics and a few other uses.
Martin’s Oct. 15 announcement came on the same day that the FCC’s Office of Engineering and Technology released a 141-page report detailing the results of lab and field testing of prototype white space devices to determine whether technologies such as spectrum sensing could eliminate the threat of harmful interference to DTV signals.
It seems that Martin’s announced backing and a thumbs-up in the report’s executive summary given to white space devices do not jibe with OET test findings presented in the document.
The Association for Maximum Service Television has spearheaded the effort to protect DTV transmission from white space device-generated harmful interference. “HD Technology Update” spoke with MSTV President David Donovan about where the industry goes from here. This week’s Sound Off is presented as an audio podcast.
Tell us what you think! HDTU invites response from our readers. Please submit your comments to editor@broadcastengineering.com . We’ll follow up with your comments in an upcoming issue.
