The FCC’s Office of Engineering and Technology (OET) said June 28 that it has approved Google to operate a TV bands database system that will be used by unlicensed TV band white space devices to restrict their transmission to unused spectrum based on their location.
Unlicensed TV white-space devices are required to contact an authorized database system to get a list of available channels for operation in their particular vicinity. The devices provide their geographic location via an Internet connection to an authorized database system, and the database returns the list of available channels.
Broadcast television stations, fixed broadcast auxiliary service (BAS) links, TV translator receive sites, low-power TV, and Class A TV stations and multichannel video programming distributors, private land mobile and commercial mobile radio service operations, offshore radio telephone service operations, radio astronomy operations at specific sites and low power auxiliary service operations, including licensed and certain approved unlicensed wireless microphone venue sites, are entitled to protection from unlicensed TV white-space devices.
Registration of these operations is available online.
