Commerce's Comstock Says US Leading World in 5G Spectrum Allocation
The U.S. is outpacing other countries in the race toward 5G in "the allocation of spectrum" but is playing catch-up in other areas such as fiber deployment, said Commerce Department Deputy Chief of Staff Earl Comstock Wednesday. Comstock spoke on a panel on 5G and supply chains at the annual Bureau of Industry and Security conference (see 1907100013). The spectrum "is not perfect" and the administration is still working to "find the right spectrum in the right spaces," he said. "We have made available to our companies far more than any other country."
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"In general, the conditions are ripe for 5G in the United States," but there needs to be a "market driver to get this out there," said Comstock. It's a bit of a "chicken and an egg problem" now because many 5G uses being discussed will be enabled by such a network, "but to get the network there, you have to spend money," he said. Rather than being first, "the more important thing is to do it properly and to do it well." State-sponsored efforts, such as from China, may get out there first, "but they probably will overlook some of the things that we're going" to see in "our innovative way of doing things."
Asked where net neutrality fits in with this discussion, Comstock deferred to the FCC. He noted 5G networks may cause different considerations. "You're going to have opportunities" for "multiple different types of networks and service agreements," he said. One user may be more interested in uninterrupted low-latency service, while another is more focused on moving large files from place to place, said Comstock. Operators will have the ability to "work with their customers and identify the precise type of service that they want," he said.
Privacy is a big topic of "interagency discussion," said Comstock, noting Commerce is responsible for the Privacy Shield agreement with the EU. "It is an area where there's going to be increasing tension," he said. "People are very focused on how do you protect the privacy" and "that's going to be an ongoing conversation."
Comstock said the administration will closely examine supply chains of companies involved in 5G, under the provisions of the executive order on supply chains security (see 1905150066) and the National Defense Authorization Act: "We are very serious about making sure that when you build out this technology it's done with trusted suppliers, so there's going to be a big focus on how do you make sure that the companies you are buying from actually have managed their supply chains, actually have looked into the security of that and are taking active measures across the board to make sure that the technology that is put in place is something that can be relied upon."
Commerce is still figuring out most specifics for rules to be issued under the May EO, said Jennifer Lane, senior counsel. The regulations, which must be released by Oct. 12, could potentially require licensing for certain types of technology imports, said Lane. Such licenses are one tool the department is looking at, and once there's a better understanding of "the types of the transactions we are looking to target, that will also determine whether a licensing issue would be the best fit," she said. Lane said significant pieces of the regulations will be "shaped" by assessments from the Office of the Director of National Intelligence and the Department of Homeland Security: "We are in the process of receiving those reports."
There's a role for DOD in helping coax 5G investment in the U.S., said David Stapleton, acting deputy assistant secretary of defense-industrial policy. Various efforts, including the trusted capital marketplace program in development, are hoped to allow the Pentagon to act as a "sweetener" to "accelerate some of that partnership with venture capital, private equity and asset management."