In accordance with the Plan to Implement Recommendations of the President’s Spectrum Policy Initiative, the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA), in coordination with relevant federal agencies, conducted a comprehensive study of the U.S. international spectrum policy framework.2 This study reviewed the following four policy considerations:
- policies and related approaches regarding barriers to the implementation of new spectrum-dependent technologies and services;
- U.S. technical, administrative and financial contributions to organizations involved in international spectrum policy;
- cross-border processes for sharing and coordination to ensure compatibility; and
- global and regional spectrum harmonization and technical interoperability.
This report is the result of the recommended study effort and examines each of the four identified components of the U.S. international spectrum management framework. In considering each area, an assessment was conducted of how the United States develops positions and interacts with other administrations and regional and international bodies with regard to international spectrum management. Past and ongoing efforts are described and analyzed and conclusions drawn from the outcomes of recent U.S. policy positions. This analysis led to several recommendations for how the U.S. Government might work both to improve national policies and procedures for international spectrum management and also to enhance the underlying framework in which it operates when seeking spectrum for new spectrum-dependent technologies and services.