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STATEMENT OF 
COMMISSIONER JONATHAN S. ADELSTEIN
Re: Unlicensed Operation in the TV Broadcast Bands; Second Report and Order and 
Memorandum Opinion and Order, ET Docket No. 04-186
Today the Commission takes a critically important step towards managing the 
public’s spectrum to promote efficiency, and to encourage the development and availability 
of innovative devices and services.   
White spaces are the blank pages on which we will write our broadband future.  I 
have long called for not only a “third pipe” into the home but a “third channel” directly to 
consumers, wherever they may roam.  Today, we make a key advance toward a third 
channel for broadband competition and deployment.  This Order is a central element of the 
national broadband strategy that I have advocated for quite some time.   
Today’s decision is consequential to our nation’s future because wireless 
broadband has the potential to improve our economy and quality of life in even the 
remotest areas.  One of the best options for promoting broadband and competition across 
the country, particularly in rural areas, is maximizing the potential of spectrum-based 
services.  Because we are a nation of innovators and entrepreneurs, the Commission’s 
decision to open fallow spectrum to new uses will give our country an opportunity to 
reclaim its place as a world leader in broadband deployment.  
Wireless devices have become a central part of many of our lives.  As the market 
continues to expand, so too does our need for spectrum and infrastructure that can meet 
the rising demands.  Our job as a Commission is to pack as much data as possible over 
the public spectrum without causing harmful interference.  Unlicensed spectrum holds by 
far the most promise for maximizing the use of white spaces.  Our balanced approach in 
this order provides the flexibility and low barriers to entry needed to provide an 
opportunity for everyone to make the best use of this under-used spectrum.  It also 
implements safeguards to protect those that already make valuable use of the spectrum.
The results of the Office of Engineering and Technology’s study show that geo-
location technology offers an accurate and dependable means of protecting spectrum 
incumbents from interference.  I am pleased with our decision to require both master-
client based and independent based devices to utilize geo-location technology and 
database access for identifying vacant channels.  Because broadcasters have such a vital 
role in local communities, preservation of consumers’ television reception and other 
services is critical to acceptance of new white spaces devices.  Although spectrum-
sensing technology has not yet been proven to offer the same level of protection, I 
applaud our support for its continuing development and look forward to the innovation it 
may bring.
I am pleased that my colleagues have agreed to provide details regarding the 
certification process for white space devices.  These additional details will provide an 
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avenue for public comment on this process and ensure that the resulting process is fully 
vetted by interested parties.  
Many have raised the concern that broadcasters and users of wireless 
microphones will suffer harmful interference as a result of this Order.  The Office of 
Engineering and Technology assures us that there are adequate protections here to 
prevent harmful interference to licensed users, and I accept their assurances.  
It is small consolation to those that feel justifiably aggrieved by the process that 
there was overwhelming support for acting now, and that more time was unlikely to 
change the outcome.  This process is not a model of transparency.  When the 
Commission puts expediency ahead of an open process, it creates unnecessary resentment 
from parties that believe they were not given a fair hearing.  This is not the process I 
would have undertaken, but since our independent engineering staff justifies the decision 
on the basis of their best expert analysis, I approve this item.
An issue of great concern remains, though, that many unwary consumers 
purchased wireless microphones that may not comport with Commission rules.  An 
investigation is underway, and if we find that Commission rules were violated, we must 
act to protect the many musicians, performers and others who will need to ensure their 
equipment continues to work.  While I am hopeful the protections we adopt today are 
sufficient, we will need to closely follow the impact on users of wireless microphones, 
and devise solutions, considering all spectrum at our disposal, so they can continue to use 
them with confidence they will function as they have come to expect.
I am pleased that the Chairman and my colleagues have agreed to launch a 
separate Notice of Inquiry (NOI) into the best use of the white space spectrum for higher 
powered unlicensed operations in rural areas.  In order for the white spaces to achieve 
maximum utilization in rural areas, rural wireless Internet service providers will need 
cheap, available and reliable backhaul.  We need to explore all ways of achieving this.  
Variable power limits deserve our consideration as one possible means.  I would have 
preferred that these questions were raised in a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking rather than 
an NOI, and that they covered all spectrum, but getting this discussion underway is a 
positive development.  
Historians looking at American telecommunications policy may well view today 
as a day that heralded change not only with the nationwide vote that is taking place at the 
polls, but also the vote that takes place here to open the white spaces for broadband 
deployment.  Both portend great progress for our future technological development.  Just 
as I enthusiastically voted at the polls earlier this morning, I vote again enthusiastically 
for this item here today.