LightSquared asks to share weather-balloon spectrum for its LTE network

28.09.2012
Embattled satellite carrier LightSquared proposed on Friday that the government let it share spectrum with federal uses such as weather balloons so it can get enough spectrum to launch its proposed national LTE mobile network.

LightSquared would give up on deploying LTE in one band of spectrum that it had been planning to use for that network before the U.S. Federal Communications Commission (FCC) moved to kill its plans over interference with GPS receivers. In the proposal it submitted on Friday, the company also offered to hold off on using the rest of that controversial spectrum until the FCC can carry out a rulemaking process that could take years.

The spectrum-sharing plan would allow LightSquared to launch a high-speed LTE network sooner than any other new competitor in the U.S., LightSquared told the FCC in its filing. It would also ensure that GPS reception isn't affected by the new network, the company said.

Growing demand for mobile data services has made the market for high-speed networks attractive to many players. Satellite TV operator is also seeking FCC approval to operate an LTE network in spectrum that traditionally has been used for satellite services. LightSquared intends to sell capacity on its network wholesale to other service providers, who would then use it to offer LTE plans to subscribers.

LightSquared was formed through a combination of satellite companies and operates satellite-based service already. In January 2011, the FCC gave LightSquared conditional approval to build a land-based mobile data network using LTE. The approval said LightSquared could sell the cellular service without a satellite component, which opened up a much bigger market for the company. But it also required testing to find out if the LTE network might interfere with GPS receivers, and a series of tests showed that it would.

The company has been calling for a spectrum swap or sharing arrangement ever since the FCC proposed in February. In the meantime, LightSquared has . On Friday, it finally laid out a specific plan.