Is Spectrum Really Important to Hispanics?

In a recent panel discussion during the Congressional Hispanic Caucus Institute’s (CHCI) annual public policy conference, moderator Rep. Linda T. Sánchez (D-CA) and Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Chairman Julius Genachowski, along with several business owners and educators, discussed the importance of regulating spectrum in the wireless telecommunication industry.

But what exactly is spectrum and why is it important to Hispanics?

“To describe spectrum’s impact on wireless communication, imagine living in a city with population x.  Next year the city will have population 17x, the following year 24x, and the following 30x.  Due to that population explosion, the city is going to need more roads and highways for people to get from one place to the next,” said panelist Christopher Guttman-McCabe, VP of CTIA, an international wireless telecommunications association.

“Spectrum comprises the highways and roads that get wireless communication from one place to the next.”

Given that spectrum is used for local TV stations, as well as all wireless devices including cell phones, PDA’s, cordless phones, wireless remotes, etc., the impact on our way of life and even our economy is vast.  According to panelist Dr. Michelle Connolly, an Economics professor at Duke University, more than 38% of the U.S. labor market’s growth, between 2000 and 2006, can be attributed to these technologies.

For Hispanics, the impact is even greater.  Hispanics are adopting technologies that use spectrum at a faster rate than any other demographic.  By 2015, it is expected that more Hispanics will access the Internet via their mobile devices than via personal computers.  As business growth and employment searches rely more and more upon Internet communication – combined with the fact that Hispanics are also among the least employed as well as the most entrepreneurial – wireless communication access will have a significant future economic impact for Hispanics.

The problems that the FCC, along with other thought leaders and entrepreneurs, are trying to solve deal with the increasingly limited supply of spectrum, as well as the most appropriate and efficient means for regulating and allocating existing and available spectrum.  Currently, many companies hold licenses to portions of the commodity that remain unused.  In an attempt to mitigate the problem, the FCC has recently called for a “voluntary return” of any unused spectrum so that it can be auctioned for more efficient market use.

Will this auction system alone solve the problem?  Even Chairman Genachowski admits that it will not.  “Although the voluntary system creates an incentive for spectrum efficiency, it’s still voluntary.  If companies decide to hold onto spectrum in order to keep control of the market from their competitors, markets cannot act efficiently.”

Although the panelists all provided differing opinions on how to solve the problem, one fact is clear.   Inefficiencies will continue. Regulations may be implemented, but at some point in the future, the spectrum problem is going to affect all Americans, not just the Hispanic community.

Justin Vélez-Hagan is Senior Contributing Writer and Commentator for Politic365.com. He is also the National Executive Director of The National Puerto Rican Chamber of Commerce, an international developer of senior living facilities, and is a reservist in the U.S. Air Force. He can be reached at Justin@Politic365.com.

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