STATEMENT OF
COMMISSIONER ROBERT M. McDOWELL
RE:      Promoting Expanded Opportunities for Radio Experimentation and Market Trials under Part 5  
of the Commission’s Rules and Streamlining Other Related Rules, ET Docket No. 10-236; 2006 
Biennial Review of Telecommunications Regulations–Part 2 Administered by the Office of 
Engineering and Technology (OET), ET Docket No. 06-155
I am pleased to support this order that modifies and streamlines our experimental licensing 
processes.  By creating a new framework to promote research and development, our action today 
encourages the development of innovative next-generation technologies and hastens their introduction
into the marketplace.  Such efforts are critical to spur investment, economic growth and job creation.  
Furthermore, our actions today will help ensure that the U.S. remains the world leader in the wireless 
sector, as we have always been.  
Among the many actions we take today, our order simplifies and harmonizes the FCC’s rules for 
experimental licensing by moving all of the Commission’s rules into one section.  The ability to locate all 
of these rules in one place to provide clear and consistent guidance to innovators is the least we could do 
in the pursuit of government best practices.  
I also appreciate that we are taking steps to modernize and streamline our rules.  For instance, we 
will now apply the same limit on the number of devices that can be imported for testing regardless of 
whether the device contains licensed or unlicensed transmitters.  Our move makes common sense in 
today’s marketplace where many devices incorporate both licensed and unlicensed technologies.
Furthermore, we are promoting research and development by creating new categories of licenses 
to augment our conventional experimental licensing regime, including a program experimental license 
that will that will provide greater freedom and flexibility to qualified applicants and speed up the 
regulatory process. I recognize that some commenters have expressed concern that this new program 
license is more likely to cause harmful interference.  These new program license rules, however, will 
impose sensible requirements to reduce the potential of harmful interference. Additionally, experimental 
licensees must stop testing if they cause harmful interference to an incumbent licensee’s operations.
In formulating these rules, we have tried to balance the needs of experimental and incumbent 
licensees.  I am hopeful that all affected licensees will work with the Commission – and particularly the 
dedicated staff of the Office of Engineering and Technology – to improve this process, if necessary.  
I appreciate the Chairman’s willingness to incorporate edits and I thank OET for their hard work 
on this order.