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 NEWS  News  media  Information  202  /  418-  0500  Fax-  On-  Demand  202  /  418-  2830  TTY  202/  418-  2555  Internet:  http://  www.  fcc.  gov  ftp.  fcc.  gov  Federal  Communications  Commission  445  12  th  Street,  S.  W.  Washington,  D.  C.  20554  This  is  an  unofficial  announcement  of  Commission  action.  Release  of  the  full  text  of  a  Commission  order  constitutes  official  action.  See  MCI  v.  FCC.  515  F  2d  385  (D.  C.  Circ  1974). 
 FOR  IMMEDIATE  RELEASE  News  Media  Contact  November  13,  2003  Lauren  M.  Van  Wazer 
 (202)  418-  0030 
 FCC  BEGINS  INQUIRY  AND  PROPOSED  RULEMAKING  REGARDING  "INTERFERENCE  TEMPERATURE"  APPROACH 
 FOR  INTERFERENCE  MANAGEMENT 
 Washington,  D.  C.  –  In  light  of  the  ever  increasing  demand  for  radio  spectrum,  and  recognizing  the  additional  challenges  this  presents  for  effectively  managing 
 interference,  the  FCC  today  adopted  a  Notice  of  Inquiry  and  Notice  of  Proposed  Rulemaking  that  sets  forth  and  seeks  comment  on  a  possible  new  way  to  quantify  and 
 manage  interference  among  different  services. 
 Termed  “interference  temperature,”  this  model  for  addressing  interference  takes  into  account  the  actual  cumulative  radiofrequency  (RF)  energy  from  transmissions  of 
 spectrum-  based  devices,  and  would  set  a  maximum  cap  on  the  aggregate  of  these  transmissions.  In  contrast,  the  current  approach  for  managing  interference  focuses  on 
 specifying  and  limiting  the  transmit  powers  of  individual  spectrum-  based  devices  as  the  chief  way  to  prevent  interference. 


 The  “interference  temperature”  approach  may  facilitate  more  intensive  use  of  the  radio  spectrum,  creating  the  opportunities  for  new  services  and  improving  the 
 predictability  of  any  interference  to  existing  services. 
 The  Notice  of  Inquiry  seeks  comment  on  a  number  of  issues  related  to  the  need  for,  development,  and  implementation  of  an  interference  temperature  model  for  managing 
 interference. 
 To  test  the  potential  usefulness  and  applicability  of  this  approach,  which  was  included  as  one  of  the  recommendations  of  the  Spectrum  Policy  Task  Force,  the  Notice 
 of  Proposed  Rulemaking  seeks  comment  on  various  technical  rules  that  would  establish  procedures  and  use  the  interference  temperature  model  on  a  limited  basis  in  the  following 
 two  bands:  6525-  6700  MHz  and  portions  of  the  12.75-  13.25  GHz  bands. 
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 Specifically,  these  procedures  would  enable  unlicensed  devices  to  operate  in  these  bands,  which  are  used  primarily  for  satellite  uplinks  and  fixed  point-  to-  point  microwave 
 services.  The  Notice  of  Proposed  Rulemaking  also  seeks  comment  on  whether  the  possible  introduction  of  unlicensed  operation  into  these  bands  would  impact  these 
 existing  services. 
 Action  by  the  Commission  November  13,  2003,  by  Notice  of  Inquiry  and  Notice  of  Proposed  Rulemaking  (FCC  03-  289).  Chairman  Powell,  Commissioners  Abernathy, 
 Copps,  and  Martin  with  Commissioner  Adelstein  approving  in  part  and  concurring  in  part.  Chairman  Powell,  Commissioners  Copps  and  Adelstein  issued  separate  statements. 


 ET  Docket  No.  03-  237 
 -  FCC  - 
 Office  of  Engineering  &  Technology  Contact:  Gary  R.  Thayer  (202)  418-  2290,  John  Reed  (202)  418-  2455,  Ahmed  Lahjouji  (202)  418-  2061. 
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