*Pages 1--1 from Microsoft Word - 32980* Federal Communications Commission FCC 03- 248 1 SEPARATE STATEMENT OF CHAIRMAN MICHAEL K. POWELL Re: Allocation and Service Rules for the 71- 76 GHz, 81- 86 GHz and 92- 95 GHz Bands. Today, we open yet another new frontier in bringing the power of broadband Internet services to the American people. The spectrum bands at 71- 76 GHz, 81- 86 GHz, and 92- 95 GHz are the highest frequency bands we have ever licensed. They join other broadband Internet platforms, both wireless— licensed, unlicensed and satellite— and wired— from powerline to DSL to cable to fiber- to- the home— in the increasingly competitive broadband Internet race. The “millimeter wave” provides new and fertile ground for our Nation’s entrepreneurs to harvest our vision of strong facilities- based competition, vibrant innovation, lower prices and consumer protection that will define our country’s broadband Internet future. Proponents of networks in theses bands say they intend to use the spectrum to compete in the market for large volume telecommunications users. Ultimately, however, the highly advanced technology used here may encourage a broad range of new products and services, such as high- speed wireless local area networks and broadband access systems for the Internet. The innovative, first- in- time licensing scheme we adopt today creates both the opportunities and incentives necessary to put spectrum to the highest and best use for the benefit of all consumers. Our approach embraces the non- exclusive technical characteristics of the very narrow beams that transmitters in these bands produce. We have also created a productive partnership with the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA), currently under the able leadership of Deputy Assistant Secretary and Acting Assistant Secretary Michael D. Gallagher, to make these new communications opportunities possible. NTIA’s flexibility and receptiveness to commercial use of these bands represents yet another way in which the agencies’ cooperative management of the nation’s spectrum resources encourages innovation, promotes investment and creates jobs for Americans. 1