Spectrum reallocation and the National Broadband Plan

Abstract:  
 
Spectrum reallocation and the National Broadband Plan

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Of the several significant changes in U.S. telecommunications policy proposed by the National Broadband Plan, none are more substantial than its proposals for spectrum policy. In particular, the Plan proposes to reallocate 500 MHz of spectrum from broadcast television, mobile satellite, government and other current uses to "mobile broadband" through the use of innovative "incentive auctions" and other voluntary, market-oriented mechanisms. The Plan’s spectrum proposals have the potential to be a major step forward in the decades-long, bi-partisan effort to replace "command-and-control" spectrum allocation with a more flexible, dynamic and market-oriented approach. Considerable work remains to be done, however, and only time and future developments will tell whether the Plan signals a significant step towards a more market-oriented policy.

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About the Author

 

Jeffrey
Eisenach
  • Economist Jeffrey Eisenach has served in senior positions at the Federal Trade Commission and the Office of Management and Budget. As a visiting scholar at AEI, he focuses on policies affecting the information technology sector, innovation and entrepreneurship. Eisenach is also a managing director and a principal at Navigant Economics and an adjunct professor at the George Mason University School of Law, where he teaches Regulated Industries. He writes on a wide range of issues, including industrial organization, communications policy and the Internet, government regulations, labor economics and public finance. He has also taught at Harvard University's Kennedy School of Government and at the Virginia Polytechnic Institute. 

  • Phone: 202-448-9029
    Email: jeffrey.eisenach@aei.org

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