National Telecommunications And Information Administration Research Articles

The FCC's Auction Authority, the 3.1–3.45 GHz Conundrum, and NTIA's Spectrum Strategy

Spectrum regulation and policy have been the recent focus of many discussions at the Congress, Federal Communications Commission (FCC) and the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA). This column will provide a brief overview of three recent developments that promise to have an impact on future spectrum policy.

Chile's Digital Learning Strategy During the COVID-19 Pandemic

The change from in-person to in-home schooling and the rapid digitalization of the system impacted the access to education and the quality of the outcomes during the pandemic, but the extent to which digital measures helped school administrators to face that impact is difficult to understand without hearing from them directly. To give those who had to adapt to digital learning some voice, this report discusses the experiences of one national education policy expert, one Learning Resources Coordinator in a public school in Northern Chile, and one Technology Coordinator in an elite private school in Santiago during the process of adapting to digital learning. The goal of these semi-structured interviews was to explore the different digital learning strategies among systems and regions at the school-home level, to then compare them with the national vision and the information that official documents and Aprendo en línea provide. The interviews took place from November, 2020, to February, 2021, right between the end of Chile’s 2020 school year and the beginning of the 2021 one.
 The findings of the exploration indicate that school administrations, but also the type and position of schools within the education system, determined which digital strategy schools adopted and how successful it was. They further revealed the social disparities that prevailed by the lack of digital tools, but also new socio-educational challenges. In all, current Chilean officers stood out as the ones accountable for addressing the digital divide, which in this case can be understood as those who learned how to use digital tools (US National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA), 1999), and those who are learning to create them.

The Provision of Learning in Mexico During the COVID-19 Pandemic

To understand how Aprende en Casa contributed to the spread of digital learning and the implementation of the Educational Digital Agenda in Mexico, this report presents the analysis of an exploratory study that consisted of three semi-structured interviews. The interviewees for this inquiry were a leader of the Aprende en Casa strategy at SEP, the director of a basic education public school in Tijuana, northern Mexico, and the director of a private pre-school establishment in Mexico City. The interviews were conducted from February to August 2021 and centered on each interviewee's perspectives according to their professional standpoint. This report presents the results according to three topics that complemented each other among the interviews: the duty of the State as the main provide of education, the progress and setbacks in the use of technologies for educational purposes, and the factors that define the digital divide in Mexico. Findings suggest that the digital divide in Mexico cannot be merely understood as the access to devices and the Internet that the US National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) defined in 1999, but as a holistic set of factors that intervene in the use of technologies: Internet and mobile, social class, economic capital, emotions and perceptions, and public policy, results which are very much in line with Robinson et al. (2015). These factors interact within an already unequal society whose educational backbone is its Secretary of Education, but whose implementation burden ultimately lies on the teaching staff.

Performance Analysis of Large-Scale NGSO Satellite-Based Radio Astronomy Systems

Large-scale non-geostationary orbit (NGSO) satellite communication systems (SCSs) are emerging to play an important role for future global wireless communication. However, downlink transmissions from these mega-constellation SCSs can cause disruptive radio frequency interference (RFI) to the radio astronomy systems (RASs) on the ground or in space. Therefore, the satellite-based RASs including low earth orbit (LEO)-based or medium earth orbit (MEO)-based RASs are further considered to lower the impact from SCSs on the higher orbit onto the ground RASs and the lower orbit RASs. In this paper, we first analyze and compare the impact of RFI on LEO satellite-based RAS and MEO satellite-based RAS. The RFI results show that for both systems, RFI from higher orbit SCSs can totally undermine the RAS continuum observation adjacent to the SCS downlink bands when using the emission mask defined by National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA). To solve the observation issues for both systems, we find out the required SCS emission mask for each RAS so that both systems can avoid RFI. Secondly, this paper also investigates three typical radio astronomy metrics such as maximum baseline distance (MBD), the number of simultaneously observing telescopes, and the signal to interference plus noise power ratio (SINR) performance. Our evaluation results show that the satellite-based RASs have greater MBD, thus, better spatial resolution, than the ground-based RAS. Due to the greater antenna gain of the ground telescopes, the SINR performance of satellite-based RASs may have limitations comparatively. However, because of more RFI sources at ground RASs in reality, satellite-based RASs have better chances to avoid RFI impact and potential SINR advantages. Additionally, we also explore the advantages of NGSO satellite-based RAS from a communication side. Our analysis shows that the large-scale NGSO satellite-based RAS can offer more spectrum access to both SCS and RAS.

Disparities in Purposeful Internet Use in U.S. States: Spatiotemporal Patterns and Socioeconomic Influences

As attention in digital divide research shifts from internet access to its use, and subsequently its impacts, this paper examines purposeful uses of the internet for the US states in 2017 using data from the Digital Nation Data Explorer of the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA). The conceptual model posits relationships of a group of demographic, societal, economic, and social capital variables to purposeful internet use (PIU) dependent variables that reference spatial clustering. The research questions are examine spatial patterns of PIU in US states and associations of demographic, socio-economic, affordability, innovation, social capital and societal openness factors with PIU dependent variables. Methods employed include k-means cluster analysis, mapping, and Ordinary Least Squares (OLS) regression analysis. Findings reveal unique cluster-based spatial patterns of high and low PIU in regions of the nation. The regression associations indicate that leading factors influencing PIU are professional, managerial, science and arts occupation, age (an inverse effect), social capital (positive effect), selected racial/ethnicity factors, and societal openness, with differences between PIU indicators for e-communication, e-entertainment, e-education, e-commerce, e-health, and purposeful internet use for internet-of-things and location-based services. Policy implications of the findings are discussed. The study is novel due to its emphasis on purposeful uses representing a second-level digital divide, the spatial insights, and new empirical findings.

Incumbent Informing Capability (IIC) for Time-Based Spectrum Sharing

As the President's principal advisor on the regulation of the telecommunications industry, and policies relating to the Nation's economic and technological advancement, the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA), U.S. Department of Commerce programs and policymaking focus largely on protecting federal spectrum-based capabilities while expanding the availability of spectrum for all users. Managing core federal spectrum programs effectively and efficiently, identifying innovative approaches to increase spectrum access and sharing opportunities, and ensuring that the Internet remains an engine for continued economic growth, which promotes a 21st century Internet economy and expands broadband Internet access in America are a driving force for NTIA policy decisions. A key pillar of this policy is to increase spectrum access for all users through improved cooperation and collaboration between Federal and non-Federal spectrum stakeholders. This paper describes an Incumbent Informing Capability (IIC) for Time-Based Sharing, an innovative way to collaboratively, securely, and dynamically increase opportunistic spectrum access within spectrum allocations principally used by the federal government. The IIC is a mechanism for more reliably informing “new entrants” in a shared spectrum band when incumbent federal systems are operating in close proximity and thus need to be protected. New entrant access to the spectrum would be controlled through an enhanced, near-real-time Spectrum Coordination System (SCS). The IIC could replace extra layers of sharing techniques such as the environmental sensing capability (ESC), which presently is required by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) for the Citizen Broadband Radio Service (CBRS) in the 3550-3700 MHz band. IIC has several potential benefits including support for mid-band spectrum sharing, reduced dependence on environmental sensing, more secure and reliable operations, and improved incumbent control of real-time spectrum usage information. Mid-band spectrum (between 1 GHz and 10 GHz) is valuable for broadband mobile wireless (e.g., 5G) communications because of its favorable propagation characteristics combined with potential for large individual channel bandwidth. This paper describes the concept for the IIC solution including operational needs and proposed business processes. It outlines how the IIC could be employed to enable spectrum sharing in the CBRS 3550-3650 MHz band and the 3450–3550 MHz band with potential for application to other bands in the future. Successful implementation of IIC will require interdisciplinary collaboration across institutions to apply AI/machine learning, secure distributed processing and data storage, and automated aggregate interference analysis. We expect the capability to evolve over time toward a dynamic spectrum sharing paradigm in selected bands where “everyone informs”, building on work demonstrated in the DARPA Spectrum Collaboration Challenge (SC2) that can more fully optimize the use of spectrum. The work is relevant to US global leadership in 5G and beyond, inspiring innovation and further research into advanced dynamic spectrum sharing.

Spectrum Handoff by Baum-Welch algorithm for services in Cognitive Radio Networks

Cognitive Radio Networks (CRN) is the upcoming future prospect in 5G networks. Lack of available spectrum is a serious problem in the networking industry nowadays since, for each individual organization only a limited spectrum bandwidth is offered by National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA). The problem arises due to the increase in the number of users who are supposed to use a limited amount of available bandwidth. Using spectrum handoff allows a cognitive user to access the available licensed spectrum in the absence of the primary user in that particular channel. Efficient spectrum sensing has to be done to check the availability of unused spectrum holes. Machine learning models such as Markov model and Hidden Markov model are used to predict the probabilities. In this paper we have presented a model for efficient sensing using Baum-Welch algorithm, a neural network algorithm which can train inner layer channel traits for given sequence of switching services to yield accurate results without huge datasets. Following emission probabilities are obtained for the channels that are trained from transition probabilities of channel services such as video, voice and data. From the obtained probability values each channel can be offered with best suited services.

Policy and Regulatory Issues

Policymakers face a conundrum: promoting the adoption of IoT services to reap its many benefits, while safeguarding societal concerns. This will be a balancing act of oversight and regulation from policymakers to drive investment and consumer adoption while ensuring that safety, security, and privacy frameworks are in place. Meanwhile, industry must step up to lead and adopt best practices and standards, which will allow policymakers to forbear as appropriate. In this inaugural issue of IEEE Internet of Things Magazine (IoTM), we are fortunate to have the Assistant Secretary of Commerce and Administrator of the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA), David Redl, as our first contributor to this Regulatory and Policy Column, discussing key findings of NTIA’s recent green paper on IoT. In future issues, we will explore critical IoT policy and regulatory issues being considered in other parts of the world as well as take a deeper dive into specific topics of interest. It is difficult to overstate the impact that IoT will have on our society; therefore, getting the policy and regulatory issues right is critical because the policies will guide the ultimate success and direction of this important digital evolution. The breadth and depth of policy and regulatory issues facing IoT are surprisingly vast, ranging from safety, privacy, security and spectrum policies to issues of infrastructure coordination, rights of way and acceptable use.

Geographic Patterns and Socio-Economic Influences on Internet Use in U.S. States: A Spatial and Multivariate Analysis

Discourse and interest in the digital divide research community is steadily shifting beyond access and adoption to utilization, impact, and outcomes of information and communications technologies (ICTs), particularly the internet. In the United States, studies and surveys conducted by the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) indicate increase in internet use in every corner of the country over the last two decades. However, recent surveys on ICT use indicate significant disparities in dimensions of internet use. For example Americans’ use of the internet to pursue e-education, e-health, e-commerce, e-entertainment, and telecommuting has varied significantly – longitudinally as well as geographically. Additionally, internet use habits are rapidly expanding, providing new insights into the emerging internet of things, wearable technologies, and new forms of social media usage. As novel technologies and lifestyles emerge, analysis of new disparities and dimensions of the “usage digital divide” stemming from social, economic, societal, and environmental factors becomes important. This research examines spatial clusters, geographic disparities, and socio-economic dimensions of existing and emerging dimensions of internet use among the 50 U.S. states. We adapt the Spatially Aware Technology Utilization Model (SATUM) for internet use by positing associations of 20 independent demographic, economic, infrastructural, affordability, innovation, societal openness, and social capital variables with 17 indicators of internet use spanning e-education, e-commerce, e-health, e-education, telecommuting, and emerging forms of internet use. Data on the 17 indicators of internet use are sourced from the July 2015 CPS Supplement on internet use from the U.S. Census. Data on traditional independent correlates are sourced from the same Supplement, U.S. Census of Population, U.S. Economic Census, while data on societal openness, social capital, infrastructure correlates are collected from George Mason University’ Mercatus Center, FCC’s National Broadband Map initiative, and noted political scientist Robert Putnam’s publicly available data on civic engagement. First, descriptive mapping provides important visual cues about patterns of internet use in U.S. states. Subsequently, K-means cluster analysis of multiple internet use-related factors is conducted to determine agglomerations of states that are most similar in patterns of internet use and outcomes. Subsequently, statistically significant “hotspots” and “coldspots” of internet use and outcomes among U.S. states are identified, followed by spatial autocorrelation analysis of various dimensions of internet usage. A-priori diagnosis of spatial autocorrelation is critical to understand and possibly account for the presence of spatial bias while examining social, economic, societal, and environmental underpinnings of internet usage. Regression residuals are mapped and examined for spatial autocorrelation. Systematic examination of rapidly evolving dimensions of internet use among U.S. states distinguishes this work. Novelties include thorough analysis of disparities stemming from geography, results showing socio-economic, infrastructural, affordability, civic engagement, and societal openness determinants of the internet “usage digital divide,” and longitudinal analysis of change dimensions. A methodological novelty is diagnosis of spatial autocorrelation of internet use, largely ignored in digital divide literature. Left undiagnosed, this can potentially bias regression-based associations of independent variables associated with internet usage. Finally, the findings of this work have critical policy implications at a time when expanding and stimulating greater variety and intensity of internet use and impacts are well-recognized as aspirations of state and federal policies.

Race and Digital Inequalities: Policy Implications

Objectives: As Internet use rises in the United States, Pew Research Center reports that only 12% of Americans were not online in 2016. Those offline are disproportionately from groups with lower incomes, lower educational qualifications, as well as from rural communities and communities of color. Distressed urban neighborhoods are disproportionately digitally excluded. In Detroit, for example, 63% of households with incomes below $35,000 did not have Internet access at home in 2015. And while any Internet access can be deemed better than none, only 73% of Americans had access to broadband at home. The proportion of households with broadband is considerably higher among White Americans (78%) than Hispanics (58%) or African Americans (65%), as well as among households with higher incomes and higher educational qualifications. In this paper, we will examine digital inequalities and intersectionality using secondary survey data and primary qualitative data. While race has previously been investigated as one of many factors that have an impact on digital inequalities, intersectionality has rarely been the focus of digital inequality studies. Methods: To shed light on this topic, we will analyze secondary survey data from the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) and the Pew Research Center to provide a broad overview of digital inequalities in the US. We will also conduct an analysis of the NTIA county level data (Form 477) for a number of US cities. In addition, we will use primary qualitative data from a recent study of community-based organizations, across these same cities, that are working to promote digital inclusion, as case studies that highlight the intersectionality of digital divides. In addition to socio-economic factors — such as age, education, and income — digital inequalities are also highly impacted by race. This characteristic is significantly more pronounced in the US than in other highly developed countries and should be investigated to further understand how race intersects with other identities. Novelty: According to a recent report from the Free Press, race is a strong factor explaining digital inequalities, even when controlling for income and education. At the same time, systemic discrimination in the US means that non-White communities, particularly in urban areas, are more likely to have lower incomes and lower educational qualifications, which exacerbates inequalities, both online and offline. The combination of quantitative and qualitative data will enable a deeper analysis of the intersectionality of these factors. Relevance: As digital inequalities persist--especially in distressed urban areas — the intersectionality of race, gender, income, education, and other factors is under-researched in digital inequality studies. Results from this study will have an impact on potential policies that aim to tackle these inequalities. Policies that work for more affluent and predominantly white rural areas, for example, are unlikely to have a positive impact in distressed urban areas. Analyzing the intersectionality of digital inequalities will enable the formulation of policy recommendations that are tailored to specific contexts in which these inequalities occur.

Comments on the Formulation of the National Broadband Research Agenda

This paper responds to a call by the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) and the National Science Foundation (NSF) for public comment to inform the development of the National Broadband Research Agenda. We propose the development of a comprehensive national database on Internet access packages and pricing available to residential consumers. While some data exist on average annual spending on Internet access service nationwide, the level of detail is inadequate to use for research or to correlate with demographic factors that might affect Internet access. Aggregate annual pricing statistics also fail to detail any breakdown of costs, which may include monthly service charges, introductory pricing that changes over time, installation fees, activation fees, data overages, and equipment purchases. Moreover, high-level numbers do not allow researchers to evaluate the effects of competition in regional marketplaces. The formulation of a National Broadband Research Agenda presents an opportunity to create a robust database from which researchers, individuals and institutions could benefit.

When the Default is No Penalty: Negotiating Privacy at the NTIA

Consumer privacy protection is largely within the purview of the Federal Trade Commission. In recent years, however, the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) at the Department of Commerce has hosted multistakeholder negotiations on consumer privacy issues. The NTIA process has addressed mobile apps, facial recognition, and most recently, drones. It is meant to serve as a venue for industry self-regulation. Drawing on the literature on co-regulation and on penalty defaults, I suggest that the NTIA process struggles to successfully extract industry expertise and participation against a dearth of federal data privacy law and enforcement. This problem is most exacerbated in precisely the areas the NTIA currently addresses: consumer privacy protection around new technologies and practices. In fact, industry may be more likely to see the NTIA process as itself penalty-producing and, thus, be disincentivized from meaningful participation or adoption.

Radar interference into LTE base stations in the 3.5 GHz band

We study the interference from a rotating shipborne radar system that spectrally and spatially coexists with a Long Term Evolution (LTE) cellular communications network in the 3.5 GHz band to investigate the feasibility of LTE deployment in the United States coastal metropolitan cities in that band. First, we simulate the radar systems with realistic operational parameters. Furthermore, we leverage a detailed 3GPP-compliant LTE simulation with a sophisticated air interface modeling and investigate sensitivity of LTE to radar interference in macro cell, outdoor small cell, and indoor small cell scenarios. We simulate the propagation conditions between the radar and LTE system by adopting the Free Space Path Loss and Irregular Terrain Model commonly leveraged by National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA), to account for propagation, diffraction, and troposcatter losses that the radar pulses undergo before they reach the LTE system. As a performance metric, we evaluate the throughput of the LTE system in the uplink direction for various distances between the radar and the cellular system. Our simulation results indicate an LTE link will remain operational even in severe interference conditions. In fact, the LTE system as close as 100 km away from the radar undergoes less than 10% throughput loss from the LTE total throughput, and the throughput loss is less than 30% when the radar is only 50 km away from the LTE.

Estimates of Economic Value Generated by Contracting Radio Exclusion Zones in the 1695-1710 MHz Band

This paper estimates the economic value of contracting protection or exclusion zones for three polar weather satellite earth stations in the 1695 MHz–1710 MHz band located in Suitland, MD; Miami, FL; and San Francisco, CA.In 2010 President Obama directed the Secretary of Commerce and the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) to make 500 MHz of spectrum available within the next decade for wireless broadband use. As part of its “fast track report” responding to the President’s request, the NTIA identified 1695–1710 MHz as one a number of candidate bands. The fast track report calculated exclusion zones – radii surrounding satellite earth stations in which commercial operation would be disallowed. Subsequently a working group within the NTIA’s Commerce Spectrum Management Advisory Committee (CSMAC) conducted more detailed work on the exclusion zones. The CSMAC working group refined the analysis whereby the radii were calculated, shrinking those radii in the process. It also recommended converting the exclusion zones to protection zones in which certain commercial activities could be permitted if they were coordinated beforehand with federal uses. The purpose of this paper is to estimate the economic value of the reduction of the radii, treating the smaller protection zones as if they were exclusion zones to simplify the analysis.This paper uses a rough population-based methodology, under which the value of a given spectrum license is assumed to be directly proportional to the number of people who can be served by that license. Population is assumed to be evenly distributed across the given area. Though this approach is obviously imprecise, it suffices to give an order-of-magnitude estimate of the economic value that would be created by shrinking exclusion zones and converting them to protection zones. It also treats exclusion zones and protection zones as functionally identical because it does not seek to generate precise dollar figures that would entail valuing the option of operating inside a protection zone.This paper’s findings may contribute to the deliberations of the Federal Communications Commission Technological Advisory Council (FCC TAC) working group exploring how risk-informed interference assessment, and particularly quantitative risk assessment rather than worst-case analysis, can inform spectrum sharing or spectrum allocation questions. The calculations contained in the NTIA’s fast track report were based on worst-case or at least very conservative assumptions. CSMAC’s assumptions were less conservative, for example using a realistic distribution of transmit power values for interfering mobiles rather than the maximum in all cases. This paper thus estimates the economic value generated by the change in method.

The opportunity of private sector sharing of government spectrum [Spectrum Policy and Regulatory Issues

As recent history has shown, the challenges of sharing government spectrum between commercial and public are long standing, but not intractable. A 1991 National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) study, U.S. Spectrum Management Policy: Agenda for the Future , set a road map for spectrum auctions in the United States and elsewhere in the world. The study made other recommendations that covered increased sharing of spectrum between private sector and government users and NTIA's plans explore fees to promote greater efficiency among federal agency spectrum users, including through a shadow market price or as a cost recovery tool. Nearly a quarter century after the NTIA study was released, the factors behind the relative effectiveness of auctions and sharing vs. market-based fees for increasing the efficiency of spectrum use are instructive for the next chapter of spectrum policy.

Solving the Spectrum Crisis: Intelligent, Reconfigurable Microwave Transmitter Amplifiers for Cognitive Radar

In 2009, the U.S. Federal Communications Commission (FCC) chair, Julius Genachowski, warned of a looming spectrum crisis [1]. Issues such as a 2010 saga involving satellite communications interfering with the global positioning system (GPS)have reminded us that spectrum is becoming an ever-precious commodity. With wireless broadband technologies evolving at a rate that will outgrow the available spectrum, the U.S. government has acted to try to stop the bleeding. President Barack Obama's National Broadband Plan of 2010 [2] mandates that 500-MHz of spectrum be reallocated for wireless broadband applications. However, the continued surge in wireless spectrum users shows that even this spectrum will be used quickly and that a new paradigm is needed. Many have suggested that dynamic spectrum access (DSA), where spectrum is assigned in real time, will be the sharing protocol of the future, and that future spectrum users will be required to be frequency-flexible and cognitive. Radar systems are spectrum users that, in their present form, will have difficulty operating in this future environment because of their fixed operating frequencies, high power, and tendency to leak power into neighboring bands and interfere with other users. In 2011, National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) Chief of Staff Thomas Power stated, community and policy makers must begin to understand the challenges and constraints that currently exist for [3]. The last three years have witnessed an upshot of radar spectrum conferences and meetings, many organized by the NTIA and the Department of Defense's (DoD's) Joint Spectrum Center. Our interest has been stimulated through encountering this issue in military radars, and in participating as speakers and panelist in many of these meetings, including a 2011 NTIA meeting for radar and communications experts to converse about coexistence challenges. However, the DoD, the FCC, and the NTIA still have not developed any technically sound solutions to achieve spectrum sharing between radar and communications. Wireless broadband expansion is not going away. The cry to radar operators is clear: radar systems must change how they operate.

New Times, New Methods: Upgrading Spectrum Enforcement

The increasingly complex radio spectrum environment is changing the sources and nature of interference threats to an increasingly important resource. At the same time, new and evolving technologies and processes hold great promise for mitigating these threats to the critical spectrum resource and the systems that rely on it. On November 14, 2013, the Silicon Flatirons Center convened a group of about two-dozen spectrum experts with a wide variety of backgrounds and expertise (list of participants in Appendix A). This group considered the threats and potential solutions for improved spectrum enforcement and developed associated findings and framed recommendations for the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA), the White House, Congress, and other policymaking groups.

NTIA convenes first facial recognition technology multi-stakeholder meeting

The US National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) has brought together representatives from technology companies, trade groups, consumer groups, academic institutions and other organizations to kick off an effort to craft privacy safeguards for the commercial use of facial recognition technology.

Funding public computing centers: Balancing broadband availability and expected demand

Abstract The National Broadband Plan (NBP) recently announced by the Federal Communication Commission visualizes a significantly enhanced commitment to public computing centers (PCCs) as an element of the Commission's plans for promoting broadband availability. In parallel, the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) has channelized part of the Broadband Technology Opportunities Program (BTOP) funding to PCCs. However, BTOP funding was the result of an unprecedented economic crisis, and is unlikely to be repeated. Future programs will need to evolve criteria for selecting projects for funding that maximize their cost-effectiveness. We argue in this paper that basing funding for PCCs on broadband availability (or non-availability), is not as cost-effective as considering a broader array of factors related to demand for internet access at public computer centers. We use data on public libraries from the National Center of Educational Statistics to identify factors predicting high demand for internet access at PCCs. Based on this analysis, we argue that low demand markets may benefit more from consumer outreach and digital literacy programs, than from infrastructure deployment. Also, we argue that markets with high availability, should receive more funding if there is high demand as well, as predicted by our model.

RF Performance of DTV Converter Boxes—An Overview of FCC Measurements

The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Laboratory conducted radio-frequency (RF) performance measurements and functionality tests on manufacturer-supplied samples of 136 digital television (DTV) converter box models on behalf of the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA). The tests served as one step in the NTIA's approval process for converter boxes to be eligible for dollar40 government coupons provided by the U.S. Congress in support of the DTV transition. We present statistics of RF performance measurements for 116 converter box models that were approved by the NTIA. Results are presented as 10th, 50th, and 90th percentile values across the set of converter boxes that were tested and approved. The RF performance measurements include: sensitivity; susceptibility to phase noise and burst noise; susceptibility to interference from single DTV signals on adjacent and taboo channels and from pairs of DTV signals on channels spaced to place third-order intermodulation products in the tuned channel; single-static-echo performance; ability to demodulate the ATSC field ensembles; and RF pass-through gain and noise.