Proposal for a Decision of the European Parliament and of the Council on the use of the 470-790 MHz frequency band in the Union

The Digital Single Market Strategy for Europe has a vision of universal, high-quality connectivity for businesses and the public. The strategy includes specific proposals from the Commission on "the coordinated release of the 694-790 MHz ('700 MHz') band, which is particularly well-suited for ensuring the provision of broadband services in rural areas, while accommodating the specific needs of audiovisual media distribution".

Wireless connectivity requires access to spectrum in the bands below 1 GHz, being the sweet spot for both wide coverage and high speeds. Following the switch to more spectrum-efficient digital television technologies, the 800 MHz band (790-862 MHz, or the 'digital dividend') was the first portion of the UHF broadcasting band (470-862 MHz) to be repurposed for wireless broadband services in the Union. At present the UHF broadcasting band comprises the range of frequencies from 470 to 790 MHz (hereinafter the 'UHF band'). This band is used for digital terrestrial television (DTT) and audio programme making and special events ('audio PMSE') equipment, essentially wireless microphones.

The 2012 World Radiocommunication Conference (WRC-12), the International Telecommunications Union (ITU) Conference that revises the binding Radio Regulations, decided that the 700 MHz band should be allocated to both the broadcasting and mobile service in Region 1 (Europe and Africa) as of 2015.

This proposal contributes to the target of 1200 MHz for wireless broadband, which is one of the key objectives of Decision 2012/243/EU of the European Parliament and the Council establishing a multiannual radio spectrum policy programme (RSPP). The proposal also promotes the further development of innovative audiovisual media services in line with the RSPP objectives.

• Primary Source

EUR-Lex: COM(2016)43: Follow the progress of this proposal through the decision-making procedure http://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/HIS/?uri=COM:2016:043:FIN

ESO: Background information: Commission proposes to boost mobile internet services with high-quality radio frequencies http://www.europeansources.info/record/press-release-commission-proposes-to-boost-mobile-internet-services-with-high-quality-radio-frequencies/

EUR-Lex: SWD(2016)19: Executive summary of the impact assessment http://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=SWD:2016:019:FIN

EUR-Lex: SWD(2016)20: Impact assessment http://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=SWD:2016:020:FIN

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