OTTAWA — Those in the telecom industry who didn’t get an early start to their civic long weekend (or don’t have any leisure plans at all for the next three days) may be able to get a jump on reading the federal government’s consultation paper regarding the proposed auction of 600MHz band spectrum.
Late Friday afternoon, the government issued a press release in which the Honourable Navdeep Bains, Minister of Innovation, Science and Economic Development (ISED), announced a consultation process for proposals to auction 600MHz spectrum, and made available the government’s most-recent consultation paper on the matter. (We estimate the consultation paper is a little over 100 pages long, but that’s only a ballpark figure as a PDF version of the paper has not been posted to the government’s consultation website yet.)
In the press release, the government said it looks forward to hearing from interested Canadians, as well as telecommunication service providers and consumer groups. Interested parties will have until October 2, 2017, to comment on the proposals outlined in the federal government’s consultation paper.
Low-band spectrum, such as the 600MHz band, is well suited to carrying signals over long distances and is also less affected by building structures than higher-frequency bands, making it ideal for next-generation wireless services in both rural and urban settings, the press release said.
Increasing access to spectrum for mobile services will support future economic and creative breakthroughs that will position Canada as a global centre for innovation and will create more jobs and business opportunities, according to the federal government.
“When it comes to telecommunications, Canadian consumers deserve the very best. At a time when middle-class Canadians are concerned about both the availability and the rising cost of these services, our government will encourage more private sector competition and investment in services that have become essential in a digital economy,” Minister Bains said in the press release.
“Making this spectrum available for commercial mobile services has the potential to benefit millions of Canadians in both urban and rural areas. Canadians deserve improved coverage, service quality and affordability, as well as the economic benefits and opportunities for all regions of the country provided by increased access to wireless spectrum for mobile services,” Bains said.
