TelecomTV TelecomTV
  • News
  • Videos
  • Channels
  • Events
  • Directory
  • Smart Studio
  • Surveys
  • Debates
  • Perspectives
  • DSP Leaders World Forum
  • DSP Leaders
  • Great Telco Debate
    • |
    • Follow
    • |
    • Subscribe
  • |
  • More
  • Webcasts
  • Surveys
  • Debates
  • Perspectives
  • Great Telco Debate
  • |
  • Follow TelecomTV
  • |
    • Subscribe
    • |
  • About
  • Privacy
  • Help
  • Contact
  • Follow TelecomTV
  • About
  • Privacy
  • Help
  • Contact
  • Sign In Register Subscribe
    • Subscribe
    • Sign In
    • Register
  • Search

Automotive

Automotive

The FCC doles out old automotive spectrum: Wi-Fi and C-V2X win

Ian Scales
By Ian Scales

Nov 21, 2019

via Flickr © woodleywonderworks (CC BY 2.0)

via Flickr © woodleywonderworks (CC BY 2.0)

  • Chairman Pai says the Department of Transport has had 20 years to develop Dedicated Short-Range Communications (DSRC), but hasn’t 
  • It’s now time to move on to other automotive communications solutions

The FCC recently decided to “take a fresh look” at the 5.9 GHz band, 75 MHz of which was allocated to Dedicated Short-Range Communications (DSRC) in 1999. FCC Chairman Pai maintains that that the original intended purpose of the allocation - to enable ubiquitous vehicle communication - has not played out well and over 20 years there has been little evolution of the technology and a disappointing level of DSRC deployment, it’s claimed. Time, says Pai, for a rethink. 

In fact, he appears to have already “re-thought” - no surprises there - and his plan involves making over 45 MHz of the band to unlicensed use (Wi-Fi - which is also celebrating a 20th birthday this year) and slipping two dedicated 10 MHz chunks to support the newish kid on the block, C-V2X - a low-latency messaging standard designed to connect on-the-go vehicles with each other and with roadside infrastructure such as traffic lights. It currently uses LTE as transport and will also use 5G in future. It can replace the ‘failed’ DSRC and do a better job while using much less spectrum Pai (and much of the industry) claims. 

So with the reallocation Pai hopes he’s solved two problems in one hit. He’s placated the Wi-Fi enthusiasts who would obviously welcome another chunk of spectrum for general use. Pai acknowledges that all the focus on cellular and 5G seems to ignore the fact that most consumers rely on Wi-Fi for most of their wireless data traffic and so he says the US will need to allow unlicensed use of up to 1.6 GHz of new mid-band spectrum by 2025 if it’s to keep up with demand. It helps that the 45 MHz sits close to the 5.725-5.850 GHz spectrum already made over to unlicensed use (effectively to Wi-Fi) . 

Secondly, he’s opened a path for the deployment of C-V2X, much to the delight of Qualcomm and other interested vendors who are keen to develop and deploy the technology. 

Winners and losers

The only problem here is the Department of Transport, which has become attached to its big chunk of spectrum and doesn’t want to let go of that and its existing development work with DSRC. Once you have dedicated spectrum the rule is that you fight hard to keep it.

But DSRC, according to Chairman Pai, is incompatible with C-V2X and the earlier idea of developing a spectrum-sharing regime to enable Wi-Fi and DSRC to coexist in the band has fallen from favour. 

The implication is that DSRC has had its chance and has now had its day.

To justify the move to prioritise an alternative technology, Pai implies that the agency has already done much for transport safety and credits it with enabling a raft of transportation innovations, such as keyless entry, tire pressure monitors, anti-theft systems, and security services to name a few. 

“These are all technologies enabled by FCC actions and during my tenure, automotive safety has been an important priority. Back in 2017, I led an effort to allocate a large swathe of contiguous spectrum in the 76-to-81 GHz band exclusively for vehicular radars. These radars have proved especially useful for emergency braking and adaptive cruise control,” he said in a recent speech. 

The message is that many of the features originally envisioned for DSRC are being provided today by other means. “Applications like Waze help with traffic management and provide alerts far in advance of road hazards ahead. Blind-spot detection and lane-departure warnings have become common features on the latest cars,” and so on. So no need for that big chunk of spectrum when C-V2X will be able to do a better job with less.

Related Topics
  • Analysis & Opinion,
  • Automotive,
  • News,
  • North America,
  • Qualcomm,
  • Short-range Wireless,
  • Telco & CSP,
  • Telecoms Vendors & OEMs

More Like This

AI, Analytics & Automation

What’s up with… Verizon, Dish Network, CETIN, Telenor Myanmar

Feb 16, 2021

5G

What’s up with… Qualcomm + Altran, Orange, Coherent

Feb 15, 2021

5G

Qualcomm drives 4G LTE and 5G global momentum for connected cars with Snapdragon Automotive Wireless Platforms

Jan 27, 2021

5G

Qualcomm and NIO bring immersive driving experiences with Intelligent Cockpit and 5G technologies to NIO ET7

Jan 9, 2021

Access Evolution

AT&T, KDDI Offer Wi-Fi, WarnerMedia Content to Mazda Vehicles

Dec 15, 2020

Email Newsletters

Stay up to date with the latest industry developments: sign up to receive TelecomTV's top news and videos plus exclusive subscriber-only content direct to your inbox – including our daily news briefing and weekly wrap.

Subscribe

Top Picks

Highlights of our content from across TelecomTV today

On-demand Workshop: How to build your cloud native 5G core platform

16:48

The case for mmWave in 5G networks

25:55

The Private Mobility Opportunity for Enterprises

12:04

VMware learnings from DISH 5G rollout

  • TelecomTV
  • Decisive Media

TelecomTV is produced by the team at Decisive Media

Menu
  • News
  • Videos
  • Channels
  • Directory
  • Smart Studio
 
  • Surveys
  • Debates
  • Perspectives
  • Events
  • About Us
Our Brands
  • TelecomTV Tracker
  • TelecomTV Perspectives
  • DSP Leaders
  • DSP Leaders World Forum
  • The Great Telco Debate
Get In Touch
[email protected]
+44 (0) 207 448 1070

Request a Media Pack

Follow
  • © Decisive Media Limited 2021. All rights reserved. All brands and products are the trademarks of their respective holder(s).
  • Privacy
  • Terms
  • Legal Notices