The WiMAX Forum believes that it is in the best interest of the UK to release part of the 2.6 GHz spectrum ahead and separately from any combined 800 MHz / 2.6 GHz award, as previously planned. Currently, the UK government intends to direct Ofcom to auction the 2.6 GHz 50MHz TDD part of the band, as a single block, in advance of the combined auction for the remaining spectrum.
“The auction of new spectrum will speed up the deployment of next generation mobile broadband, benefiting consumers across the country," said Ron Resnick, president and chairman of the WiMAX Forum.
“Following years of uncertainty and deliberations leading to the publication of the Digital Britain Report and the Independent Spectrum Broker’s Report, we congratulate the government in establishing what we believe to be the best possible compromise meeting the needs of government, industry and most importantly the people,” he continued.
The WiMAX Forum is hopeful that Parliament will expedite approval to allow Ofcom to release the 2.6 GHz TDD spectrum in 2010.
Today, more than 115 million people in Europe are covered by 153 WiMAX deployments and adoption of WiMAX continues to grow thanks to an increase in spectrum allocations made in 2009. WiMAX networks can be deployed quickly and more cost effectively compared to wired alternatives.