Microsoft's Dan Reed on Spectrum Policy
Microsoft's Dan Reed, corporate vice president of technology, strategy and policy, is scheduled to speak in the nation's capital on Wednesday about spectrum policy. Spectrum, a finite resource, is needed to power the tremendous growth of mobile devices and for the infrastructure of the information economy. Reed spoke with Tech Daily Dose early Wednesday morning and gave a preview of his remarks to be delivered at the Gov 2.0 Summit held at the Grand Hyatt Washington. Edited excerpts from the interview follow:
TDD: What commercial stake does Microsoft have in spectrum?
DR: We care for a variety of reasons. It matters in our smartphone business, access to service, digital inclusion issues and what it means for cloud computing.
TDD: What's the best path toward meeting the growing demand for spectrum?
DR: A mixture of better regulatory and technological approaches to the use of licensed and unlicensed spectrum. One of the issues we care about passionately is resolution of the white space issue.
TDD: Are auctions the appropriate mechanism to bring more spectrum to market?
DR: It's certainly one of the mechanisms, but what I'm going to talk about today are more nimble policy mechanisms. The reason that spectrum is allocated the way it is dates back half a century for radio usage. We can't go back and overturn what's happened. The practical challenge is the following: most spectrum, most places, most of the time, is unused, yet there is incredible pressure on certain sections of spectrum.
Part of the solution will be more efficient use of spectrum through cognitive radio technologies. For instance, if a device, through a rapid set of decision making, is able to query a database about what spectrum is available there and identify the rules governing its use, and can then use that spectrum, we can make much better use of available resources. In cognitive radio technology, the rights of incumbent spectrum license owners can be respected.
TDD: What's important for people to understand about this issue?
DR: The rate of change in technology and expectations is running headlong into our historical decision making processes for allocating spectrum. We will have to find a middle ground. It's not just about getting more cool applications for your smartphone, it's about making changes that will be critical to the future our nation's infrastructure.
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