As part of the Government's plans to release 500 MHz of spectrum below 5 GHz by 2020, the Ministry of Defence intends to open up some military frequency bands for new sharing opportunities for public and private sector users. This is in addition to releases at 2310 - 2400 and 3410 - 3600 MHz that Defence is planning to take to market in 2013/14 and 2015/16 respectively.
All sharing requests will be considered and where appropriate, technical assessments will be conducted to ascertain whether sharing is possible. If feasible, negotiations will take place between MOD and the customer to establish the commercial terms and conditions and regulatory constraints. Where an agreement is reached, MOD will request Ofcom to initiate the process to grant a Wireless Telegraphy Act licence to the customer to enable them to use the spectrum.
The MOD has identified 3500 - 3580 MHz for short term sharing opportunities from 3 Nov 2011, which along with some spectrum between 3410 - 3480 MHz, is due to be released in 2015/2016. Additional spectrum at 3410 - 3480 MHz may become available for sharing in 2012/13. No licences granted for shared use will be extended beyond March 2015. Should any organisation in the public or private sector wish to apply to share spectrum please read the "How to apply to share 3500-3580MHz" section for further information.
The MOD is committed to supporting London 2012 Olympics therefore applicants should be aware that sharing opportunities within Olympic areas will be unlikely until Oct 2012.
What you need to do
Simply complete and submit the MoD Sharing Defence Spectrum form (link to document on the right hand side) to the Defence Spectrum mailbox.
You may wish to review section 4.78 of the Ofcom document “Crown Recognised Spectrum Access in 3400 to 3600 MHz” (linked on the right hand side), which contains details of the base station Technical Licence Conditions.
What we do
- Assess the technical requirements of your request – including any potential impact on any known system currently using the requested frequencies.
- Assess cost of requested spectrum including our fees for undertaking this work
- Accept or reject application to share Defence Spectrum
- If an application is accepted; draft and issue contract for the term of the agreement
- Upon receipt of a signed contract we will request Ofcom to grant a Wireless Telegraphy Act licence
- Issue annual invoices for fees as detailed in the contract
- Undertake an annual review of the contract and spectrum usage
Applicants should note that the MOD is not obliged to enter into any trade and may refuse an application at any point prior to contract signing. Examples of reasons for refusal to trade may include unmanageable technical issues, issues relating to national security and the application is likely to distort competition.
As this is a new process exact timescales will vary, however we hope to complete the process in 2 to 3 months from initial enquiry.
An indicative pricing structure for 3500 - 3580MHz can be found linked on the right hand side.