Radio spectrum is a specific range of frequencies of electromagnetic energy that is used to communicate information. The access to and use of spectrum is a major enabler for economic and social growth. Its use empowers people, creates an environment that nurtures technological and service innovation, and triggers positive change in business processes, as well as in society. As a result, governments are placed under enormous pressure to expand access to spectrum. The challenge arising for governments is to determine how spectrum, a scarce and vitally important resource, should be determined, quantified, valued, and allocated for use – while at the same time considering the impact that the emerging concept of ‘spread spectrum’ has on these questions.
Our ICT, regulatory, and governance experts were engaged by the Radio Spectrum Management Group, within the NZ Government, to review these policy questions. What we found was that the management of electromagnetic spectrum had substantially evolved, with differing theories about the nature of spectrum and its use – and how spectrum should be regulated. Industry saw spectrum in economic terms, as an ICT production input, and placed enormous pressure on governments to make increasingly large portions of spectrum available to the mobile industry to meet the spectacular demand growth. Governments viewed spectrum along social and economic terms and considered wider policy and regulatory concerns. Our team undertook international literature, drew upon our own experiences advising both industry and governments worldwide, reviewed and analysed potential spectrum valuation methodologies, together with the international and ITU direction as a reference benchmark. Our team identified for key policy objectives for spectrum:
A robust auction process was designed to meet the exploding demand for spectrum and its associated monetization driven by wireless access demand drive. Basic spectrum management models – command-and-control, property rights, and commons were incorporated into the model, as well as consideration of the impact of spread spectrum.