With the date for the 700 MHz spectrum auction rapidly approaching, everyone in the game has an opinion about it for the FCC. There are two big issues here: how to use the spectrum for public safety and what rules to follow for the auction.

24 MHz of spectrum have been allotted for a public safety network. Cyren Call Communications proposed a plan that would add another 30 MHz to be controlled through an FCC broadband trust but was rejected by Congress because of the loss at auction. The main proposal now is Frontline’s idea to take 12 MHz of the allotted 24 and combine it with 10 MHz from the auction, auctioning off the entire chunk to a winning bidder who would be required to make public safety agencies a priority on the network. Some public safety groups support this plan as the only way to realistically get a network built but others feel that the plan takes away local control.

The other big issue is in regards to how to run the auction itself. Frontline’s plan calls for open-access rules which are of course supported by groups like Save Our Spectrum Coalition and opposed by companies like Verizon. Google, coming out in support of open-access, has suggested a plan for “dynamic auctions” in which auction winners could in turn re-auction their spectrum for certain lengths of time.