Spectrum hearing put off

“We expect to hold the hearing in January or February,” Settapong Malisuwan, a member of the National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission (NBTC), said yesterday.
He said earlier that he had intended to hold the public hearing next month. However, he now says it is better to wait until the flood completely recedes for the convenience of those wanting to take part in the hearing. It will also be easier to seek a big venue for the hearing after the flood subsides, he added.
Settapong is the NBTC’s vice chairman for the telecom committee, which has formulated the master plan. The NBTC will consider it next week.
The draft follows International Telecommunication Union standards. It also emphasises reserving some television and radio frequencies for public service as required by the Frequency Allocation Law.
After finishing the spectrum master plan, the NBTC will hurry to hold the public hearing on the telecom and broadcasting master plans, which are being drafted along with the spectrum plan. The NBTC needs the three key plans in place as platforms to auction spectrum licences.
After finishing the three master plans, it will develop action plans, including the spectrum outlook, spectrum allocation plan, spectrum database, frequency fee, law enforcement and spectrum reclamation for reallocation.
The NBTC will have to finish the spectrum master plan first before it can reclaim telecom and broadcasting frequencies.
The NBTC on Wednesday decided not to extend contracts to companies for its radio station’s nine frequencies in preparation for their reallocation. The contracts expire at the end of the year.
The NBTC station is jointly operating radio programmes on these nine frequencies with the companies.
The NBTC also assigned its broadcasting committee to study possible uses for the nine reclaimed frequencies, particularly for public service.