Copenhagen hosted last 19-22 January the 24th meeting of project team 42 (PT 42) of the Spectrum Engineering working group (WG SE), chaired by the United Kingdom's administration. PT SE 42 is responsible for technical issues associated to the introduction of flexible spectrum use in the bands known as flexible bands (862-870 MHz, 1785-1805 MHz and 57-59 GHz were the bands originally indicated by WG FM - the first no longer pertains to the flexible bands) and the Wireless Access Policy for Electronic Communication Services (WAPECS - 470-862 MHz, 880-915 MHz/925-960 MHz, 1710-1785 MHz/1805-1880 MHz, 1900-1980 MHz/2010-2025 MHz/2110-2170 MHz, 2.5-2.69 GHz and 3.4-3.8 GHz).
In 2008 the group presented the response to the first European Commission (EC) mandate, framed per the new community policy on flexible spectrum use. The mandate required definition of the minimum technical conditions, bearing in mind the need to avoid interference, to be applied to WAPECS bands. These bands were assigned by the Radio Spectrum Committee (RSC) per the policy for wireless access to electronic communication services of the Radio Spectrum Policy Group (RSPG).
In June 2009 the European Commission issued a new CEPT mandate vis-à-vis WAPECS on application of the concept in the 1900-1980 MHz/2010-2025 MHz/2110-2170 MHz bands, also known as the 2 GHz band. In this mandate the EC emphasises that the band is being used in Europe for the implementation of third generation (3G) UMTS networks, but due to the urgency and importance of finishing preparatory work on the EC Decision for the 2500-2690 MHz band, the 2 GHz was not studied, even though considered in the first WAPECS mandate. It also stresses that given the goal of having a similar set and minimum technical conditions for implementing electronic communications services in all the frequency bands in question, in all member States, under the mandate CEPT would have to study the possibility of transposing the results per the EC Decision in 2500-2690 MHz to the 2 GHz band.
The meeting saw the definition of base station masks, terminal stations and technical conditions for operation and co-existence. The responses to tasks 1 (WAPECS questionnaire summary) and 2 of the mandate were consolidated in a preliminary report which will be presented at the next ECC meeting in the first week of March 2010 for approval and later submission to public consultation. The group’s next meeting should examine responses to the public consultation. Same will be held on 25-26 May at a still undetermined location, and will probably be the group’s last meeting.
