U.S. Department of Commerce John E. Bryson, Secretary Lawrence E. Strickling, Assistant Secretaryfor Communications and Information March 2012 TABLE OF CONTENTS Fixed Point-to-Point Microwave..................................................................................... 8Military Tactical Radio Relay (TRR)................................................................................. 8Air Combat Training System (ACTS) ............................................................................... 9Precision Guided Munitions (PGM)................................................................................ 9Tracking, Telemetry, and Commanding (TT&C) ........................................................... 10Aeronautical Mobile Telemetry (AMT) ........................................................................ 12Video Surveillance ........................................................................................................ 13Unmanned Aerial Systems ........................................................................................... 14Other Systems .............................................................................................................. 14 Comparable Band Prioritizations.................................................................................. 15Detailed Analysis of Priority Comparable Bands.......................................................... 20 Video Surveillance ........................................................................................................ 35Unmanned Aerial System............................................................................................. 40Other Systems .............................................................................................................. 415.CONCLUSIONS/RECOMMENDATIONS.......................................................................... 49ACRONYMS AND ABBREVIATIONS.......................................................................................... 51LIST OF TABLES........................................................................................................................ 57LIST OF FIGURES...................................................................................................................... 57APPENDIX A – List of Referenced Federal Agency Inputs......................................................A-1APPENDIX B – Federal Agency Systems in the 1755-1850 MHz Band...................................B-1APPENDIX C – Current Operations in the Comparable Bands ............................................... C-1APPENDIX D – Agency Rationale for Comparable Band Priorities.........................................D-1 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY The Department of Commerce’s National Telecommunications and InformationAdministration (NTIA) led an interagency group to determine the viability of accommodatingcommercial wireless broadband in the 1755-1850 MHz band. While the analyses summarizedin this report indicates there are a number of challenges to repurposing, NTIA concludes that itis possible to repurpose all 95 megahertz of the band. The challenges still to be met include thehigh cost and long timeline of the undertaking, estimated to be approximately $18 billion over10 years, assuming relocation of most existing federal users, not including costs to incumbentsystems in comparable destination bands.1However, the extent to which the spectrum can bemade exclusively available to commercial interests requires further investigation, as somefederal systems could remain in the band indefinitely. As a step toward meeting thesechallenges, NTIA believes that the agencies need to engage with industry to identify potentialsolutions, which could include partial clearing scenarios and a phased approach to commercialauctions and entry. NTIA also believes that spectrum sharing is a vital component of satisfyingthe growing demand for access to spectrum and that both federal and non-federal users willneed to adopt innovative sharing techniques to accommodate this demand. This analysis results from an eight-month evaluation process led by NTIA and engaging,via the Policy and Plans Steering Group (PPSG), the predominant federal agency users of thisband.2Each federal agency analyzed and documented its ability to relocate systems, associatedcosts, and anticipated periods of transition. In conducting the analysis, NTIA and the federalagencies endeavored to protect critical federal operations from disruption and to reachcomparable capability via other spectrum, commercial services, or means that do not utilizespectrum, where appropriate. The analysis performed in this study surfaced the following challenges, which requiresatisfactory resolution: •Achieving Comparable Capability for Federal Systems:NTIA and the FederalCommunications Commission (FCC) will need to allocate comparable spectrum(unless federal agencies achieve comparable capabilities via alternate means)