LIVE FROM GSMA MOBILE ASIA CONGRESS 2011: The Federal Communications Commission (FCC), the US regulator, is tackling the so-called “spectrum crunch” to promote the development of mobile broadband. Speaking in Hong Kong today, FCC chairman Julius Genachowski (pictured) outlined the FCC’s initiatives to help mobile broadband develop in the US and beyond.

With huge increases in mobile connections, mobile broadband subscriptions and devices putting pressure on networks, Genachowski said the problem of spectrum demand outstripping supply is “the most immediate threat to a successful mobile future.”

“We need to tackle the looming spectrum crunch by dramatically increasing the amount of spectrum available for mobile broadband. The FCC has made recovering spectrum one of our highest priorities,” he said.

The FCC’s national broadband plan includes spectrum recovery goals to return 500MHz of spectrum for mobile broadband in the US by 2020, including proposed two-sided spectrum auctions in which existing spectrum licence holders contribute unused spectrum and take a share of the revenue created by its reallocation.

Genachowski said this plan – which is under consideration by US lawmakers – could potentially free up 100MHz of spectrum and generate US$25 billion for the US Treasury. “This is the biggest single step we can take to free up the biggest blocks of spectrum,” he said.

Other approaches the FCC is looking at include dynamic spectrum sharing, the creation of a second-hand spectrum market, and offloading data onto Wi-Fi networks to reduce pressure on mobile networks where possible.

The FCC has made mobility a universal service goal for the first time and is also making it easier for operators and infrastructure companies to provision mobile broadband. “The commission has made it a priority to identify and remove barriers to broadband infrastructure build-out," Genachowski said. Steps include reducing the cost of attaching wired and wireless equipment to utility poles and allowing spectrum to be used for wireless backhaul, which will help with LTE provision in rural areas.

The regulator has also acknowledged that operators need a meaningful return on their extensive investment in mobile broadband – so the FCC has made it permissible for them to operate tiered pricing that reflect usage levels.

Looking beyond the US, Genachowski said the FCC is keen to work with the International Telecommunication Union to make progress on issues to do with free movement of data across borders to unleash the potential of cloud computing for mobile. “We must also prioritise and set global targets. We need to all work together to find spectrum globally to tackle the spectrum crunch,” he said.