IBEC - Newsroom - Greater availability of spectrum critical for broadband

Wednesday, 28 April 2010

The Telecommunications and Internet Federation (TIF), the IBEC group that represents the telecoms industry, today said that central government needs to give clear guidance on its plans for making greater quantities of radio spectrum available so that the telecoms industry can deliver new and innovative broadband services. Radio spectrum is the range of frequencies the mobile industry uses to transmit information.

Speaking at a TIF seminar about EU spectrum policy, Santiago Tenorio, chief technical officer of Vodafone, said: “Our ability to continue delivering innovative services and broadband access across Ireland depends on access to greater quantities of radio spectrum. Europe needs to allocate more spectrum for mobile data to remain competitive, increasing the mobile industry’s share of sub-5GHz spectrum from 8% to 20% by 2020.”

TIF director Tommy McCabe said: “The total volume of services that depend on radio spectrum availability is estimated to be worth at least €200 billion annually in Europe, with mobile broadband’s contribution rapidly increasing. High Speed Packet Access (HSPA) modems, USB dongles and 3G phones are now in everyday use, so it is critical that more spectrum, especially that arising from the analogue-digital switch-off, is allocated for these services.

“Our recent report, ‘Building a Next Generation Access network for Ireland’, highlighted that central government needs to give clear guidance on plans for spectrum to facilitate industry investment in high-speed wireless access infrastructure,” Mr McCabe added.

Addressing the seminar Mike Byrne, commissioner of ComReg and vice-chair of the radio spectrum policy group that advises the European Commission on spectrum policy, said: “Spectrum is a finite resource, so its allocation requires effective and efficient coordination at European and national level. Spectrum has significant potential to act as a catalyst for innovation and growth, can contribute considerably to a European-wide economic recovery and support the delivery of sustainable economic development as well as create new jobs.”

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IBEC - Newsroom

Greater availability of spectrum critical for broadband

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