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 STATEMENT  OF  COMMISSIONER  MICHAEL  J.  COPPS 
 Re:  Unlicensed  Operation  in  the  TV  Broadcast  Bands  (ET  Docket  No.  04-  186);  Additional  Spectrum  for  Unlicensed  Devices  Below  900  MHz  and  in  the  3  GHz 
 Band  (ET  Docket  No.  02-  380),  Notice  of  Proposed  Rule  Making 
 I’m  pleased  that  we  are  exploring  ways  of  finding  spectrum  below  1  GHz  for  unlicensed  technologies.  The  unlicensed  community  has  requested  that  we  find  such 
 spectrum  for  many  years  now,  explaining  that  with  it  they  could  bring  broadband  to  communities  where  it  is  unavailable  today,  and  maybe  even  bring  new  competition  to  a 
 market  that  today  is  characterized  by  inadequate  competition. 
 As  we  proceed,  we  must  of  course  find  ways  to  balance  the  need  to  provide  spectrum  resources  for  innovators,  entrepreneurs,  and  new  technologies  with  the  equally 
 important  need  to  avoid  harmful  interference  to  incumbent  users  and  consumers.  I  believe  that  this  NPRM  asks  the  right  questions  and  that  it  is  a  balanced  –  and  actually  I 
 think  a  rather  conservative  –  approach,  and  I  hope  that  broadcasters  and  unlicensed  entrepreneurs  alike  will  work  with  us  to  craft  appropriate  protections  as  we  move  ahead 
 to  realize  the  potential  benefits  of  unlicensed  use  of  this  part  of  the  spectrum. 
 Finally,  I  want  to  encourage  the  Bureau  and  my  colleagues  to  be  vigilant  to  ensure  that  we  have  the  investigative  and  enforcement  resources  and  plans  in  place  as  we  pursue 
 more  and  more  complicated  spectrum  arrangements.  We  may  allow  unlicensed  operations  in  this  band.  And  we  have  already  allowed  other  tightly  packed  licensed  and 
 unlicensed  use  in  other  bands.  Given  the  interference  concerns  these  actions  create,  we  must  be  able  and  ready  to  conduct  independent  harmful  interference  tests,  and  to  act 
 decisively  when  harmful  interference  has  occurred. 
 Thanks  to  OET  for  this  good  item. 
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