BELLEVUE, WA--(Marketwired - Jul 18, 2013) - 4G Americas, a wireless industry trade association representing the 3GPP family of wireless technologies including LTE mobile broadband, commends Representatives Doris Matsui (D-CA), Brett Guthrie (R-KY), Adam Smith (D-WA) and Duncan Hunter (R-CA) for introducing a bipartisan bill to repurpose the 1755 - 1780 MHz band for commercial mobile broadband and pair it in auction with the 2155 - 2180 MHz band. In the Efficient Use of Government Spectrum Act of 2013 , the bill calls for an internationally-harmonized pairing of the 1755 MHz sub-band with 2155 - 2180 MHz, which the U.S. government has already identified for auction for mobile broadband by February 2015.
"The U.S. mobile broadband industry is a worldwide leader as U.S. subscribers utilize more applications and services that increase productivity in their work and personal lives," stated Chris Pearson, President of 4G Americas. "The industry requires more spectrum to meet society's increasing demand and to continue to fuel investment, jobs and the economy as technology evolves." Pearson added, "This bill helps provide users highly-valued internationally-harmonized spectrum while furthering the President's goal of 500 MHz of spectrum for commercial mobile broadband."
4G Americas applauds the Members for keeping focused on this critical block of spectrum. Freeing up the 1755 - 1780 MHz band is key to the U.S. maintaining its leadership in mobile broadband, particularly because this spectrum is the last available uplink band in the U.S. that is paired with 2155 - 2180 MHz in the internationally-harmonized band plan. Additionally, the 1755 - 1780 MHz band has been estimated by some third party analysts to be worth $12-$13 billion when paired with 2155 - 2180 MHz and auctioned. Proceeds from a paired auction will better meet the government's goal of deficit reduction, increasing public safety and funding Next Generation 911 services.
Pearson added, "4G Americas is pleased to see progress on this critical piece of radio spectrum as time is of the essence to get it paired and auctioned, to meet both users' demand and the spectrum act's deadlines."
About 4G Americas: Unifying the Americas through Mobile Broadband Technology 4G Americas is an industry trade organization composed of leading telecommunications service providers and manufacturers. The organization's mission is to promote, facilitate and advocate for the deployment and adoption of the 3GPP family of technologies throughout the Americas. 4G Americas contributes to the successful commercial rollout of 3GPP mobile broadband technologies across the Americas and their place as the No. 1 technology family in the region. The organization aims to develop the expansive wireless ecosystem of networks, devices, and applications enabled by GSM and its evolution to LTE-Advanced. 4G Americas is headquartered in Bellevue, Wash., with an office for Latin America and the Caribbean in Dallas. More information is available at www.4gamericas.org .
4G Americas' Board of Governors members include: Alcatel-Lucent, América Móvil, AT&T, BlackBerry, Cable & Wireless, Cisco, CommScope, Entel, Ericsson, Gemalto, HP, Mavenir, Nokia Siemens Networks, Openwave Mobility, Powerwave, Qualcomm, Rogers, T-Mobile USA and Telefónica.
