Improving the Effectiveness and Efficiency of Spectrum Use by the Public Sector : Lessons from Europe

Huge strides have been made in enhancing the efficiency of spectrum use by private commercial users over the past two decades, but only scant improvement in the methodologies and technologies associated with spectrum use by public sector users (including the military, emergency services, and aeronautical and maritime transport. This paper assesses the applicability of a number of emerging European ideas and practices to public sector spectrum management in the United States. Two relevant studies were been completed in 2008, one by the Radio Spectrum Policy Group (the RSPG, an advisory group to the European Commission), the other a consulting study by led by WIK-Consult and conducted on behalf of the European Commission. Both studies examined spectrum management practices in the Netherlands (where periodic re-justification of spectrum assignments is required) and in the UK (where market-inspired techniques are being applied to the management of public sector spectrum)