US and UK Regulators to add Mobile Spectrum for Data

 
The FCC and Ofcom both announced recently their intentions to add more spectrum to mobile carries, for data services.

FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski said in a press event at the 2011 CES show - "We need to free up more spectrum .. If we don’t tackle the spectrum crunch now, network congestion will grow, and consumer frustration will grow with it .. That’s why unleashing spectrum to support mobile innovation is at the top of the FCC’s 2011 agenda". See "Chairman Genachowski's Remarks at the 2011 International Consumer Electronics Show" - here.

Ofcom published a statement saying that "From today the airwaves used by mobile phone operators for 2G services, such as making phone calls and sending texts, will be available to provide 3G services .. Today’s move means that this spectrum could in future be used to meet the growing demand from smartphone devices and the like for 3G services". See "Ofcom opens up more frequencies for 3G services" - here.

Not everybody was happy with the move - for example 3UK, an operator that does not have 2G frequencies (as the name indicates ..). See "3UK head criticizes spectrum allocation ruling" - here. 
 

"Kevin Russell, chief executive of 3 UK (picture), has indicated that his business could be sold after accusing ministers and regulators of distorting competition in the telecoms industry. He criticized a decision by regulators to let the operator’s larger rivals reallocate some of their radio spectrum from basic phone services to data activities such as internet browsing. .. The company wants Ofcom, the telecoms regulator to draw up auction rules that cap the amount of spectrum that any operator can hold. Without this, 3 doubts that O2 and Vodafone could end up holding the bulk of the spectrum available at a bandwidth below one gigahertz. Everything Everywhere, the largest network operator, has similar concerns to 3".