Wireless Cable: MMDS and ITFS (with Santa Barbara Operators)

While the "Wireless Cable" bands are not directly availble to the smaller users that tend to use ISM band communications, they are of interest nevertheless, for several reasons:

They are used for similar services (multipoint data applications)
Where the MMDS operators are active, they are competitors of the independent wireless ISPs
MMDS equipment is often colocated in the same antenna sites as ISM band equipment
Where the MMDS license holder is not actively using the band, there may be interest in leasing channels from the license holders.

For these reasons, we are including this page of information.

ITFS and MMDS

Overview of the band

As this picture (from from http://www.fcc.gov/wtb/auctions/summary/bandplan.html#mds) shows, MDS, ITFS and MMDS are really one set of licensed spectrum, sharing a common history and on frequencies close enough to have similar characteristics. These channels were originally allocated for "wireless cable television" - encrypted local rebroadcast of commercial video networks to paying subscribers (MMDS) and closed-circuit feeds of university lectures to educational classrooms in the community (ITFS). The rapid rise of direct-broadcast sattelites soon after these bands were licensed but before significant buildout had occurred, made the original purpose of the bands obsolete (not commercially viable), and the FCC amended the rules to allow two-way communication.

The two old MDS channels at 2150-2162 MHz have been reallocated as MMDS, (except that MDS channel 2 has been truncated to 4MHz (2156-2160 is now identified as channel 2A) and 2160-2162 is reserved for "emerging new services". The 20 channels of ITFS and 11 channels of MMDS are really one service, where the ITFS channels are reserved for non-profit and educational use while the MMDS channels were auctioned off in 1996. Because the channels are interleaved, the 6MHz channel width is stringently enforced. Each user gets up to four 6MHz channels.

The detailed rules of what can be transmitted in ITFS and MMDS bands are outlined in NPRM 97-360 (101 page PDF file) chich can be found at http://www.fcc.gov/mmb/vsd/itfs/itfshot.html.

Users in Santa Barbara

This list comes off the FCC database. This market area is designated as Basic Trading Area 406 (Santa Barbara and Santa Maria). The auction database indicates that an entity designated as Wireless Telecommunications, Inc. paid $1.1M for a license.

UCSB

Call Sign, facility ID, Service WAQ323 / 66324 / VX

Address UC Regents, 2200 University Avenue, Berkeley, CA 94720

Channels A1, A2, A3, A4

Expires 12/20/2006

UCSB
Call Sign, facility ID, Service	WAQ323 / 66324 / VX
Address	UC Regents, 2200 University Avenue, Berkeley, CA 94720
Channels	A1, A2, A3, A4
Expires	12/20/2006

Archdiocese of LA

Call Sign, facility ID, Service WHR839 / 2662 / VX

Address Archdiocese of LA, Education and Welfare Corp, 3424 Wilshire Blvd, Los Angeles CA 90010

Channels D1, D2, D3, D4

Expires 6/10/2007

Archdiocese of LA
Call Sign, facility ID, Service	WHR839 / 2662 / VX
Address	Archdiocese of LA, Education and Welfare Corp, 3424 Wilshire Blvd, Los Angeles CA 90010
Channels	D1, D2, D3, D4
Expires	6/10/2007

Mester's TV

Call Sign, facility ID, Service WLK217 / 301039 / MD

Address John Mester, 682 Argyle Road, Brooklyn, NY 11230

Channels E1, E2, E3, E4

Expires 5/01/2001 (Assigned prior to 1996 auction)

Transmitter Site Gibraltar Peak

Mester's TV
Call Sign, facility ID, Service	WLK217 / 301039 / MD
Address	John Mester, 682 Argyle Road, Brooklyn, NY 11230
Channels	E1, E2, E3, E4
Expires	5/01/2001 (Assigned prior to 1996 auction)
Transmitter Site	Gibraltar Peak

Mester's TV

Call Sign, facility ID, Service WNTA868 / 301834 / MD

Address John Mester, 682 Argyle Road, Brooklyn, NY 11230

Channels H1, H2

Expires 5/01/2001 (Assigned prior to 1996 auction)

Transmitter Site Gibraltar ("4.8km NW of Montecito")

Mester's TV
Call Sign, facility ID, Service	WNTA868 / 301834 / MD
Address	John Mester, 682 Argyle Road, Brooklyn, NY 11230
Channels	H1, H2
Expires	5/01/2001 (Assigned prior to 1996 auction)
Transmitter Site	Gibraltar ("4.8km NW of Montecito")

Mester's TV

Call Sign, facility ID, Service WMX215 / 301564 / MD

Address John Mester, 682 Argyle Road, Brooklyn, NY 11230

Channels H3

Expires 5/01/2001 (Assigned prior to 1996 auction)

Mester's TV
Call Sign, facility ID, Service	WMX215 / 301564 / MD
Address	John Mester, 682 Argyle Road, Brooklyn, NY 11230
Channels	H3
Expires	5/01/2001 (Assigned prior to 1996 auction)