MVDDS (Multichannel Video and Data Distribution Service) is a type of television and

Internet The Internet (or internet) is the global system of interconnected computer networks that uses the Internet protocol suite (TCP/IP) to communicate between networks and devices. It is a '' network of networks'' that consists of private, pub ...

delivery technology licensed for use in the United States by the

Federal Communications Commission The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is an independent agency of the United States federal government that regulates communications by radio, television, wire, satellite, and cable across the United States. The FCC maintains jurisdiction ...

(FCC). This was subsequently tested by The MITRE Corporation for the FCC. A report was filed in the 98-206 Docket before the FCC. This

terrestrial Terrestrial refers to things related to land or the planet Earth. Terrestrial may also refer to: * Terrestrial animal, an animal that lives on land opposed to living in water, or sometimes an animal that lives on or near the ground, as opposed to ...

based

wireless Wireless communication (or just wireless, when the context allows) is the transfer of information between two or more points without the use of an electrical conductor, optical fiber or other continuous guided medium for the transfer. The most ...

transmission method reuses

Direct Broadcast Satellite Satellite television is a service that delivers television programming to viewers by relaying it from a communications satellite orbiting the Earth directly to the viewer's location. The signals are received via an outdoor parabolic antenna comm ...

(DBS) frequencies for distribution of multichannel video and data over large distances. The spectrum is in the 12.2–12.7 GHz range, offering fast downloads but requiring other frequencies for uploads. It is seen as a potential competitor to cable for delivery of ''

triple play In baseball, a triple play (denoted as TP in baseball statistics) is the act of making three outs during the same play. There have only been 733 triple plays in Major League Baseball (MLB) since 1876, an average of just over five per season. Th ...

'' or ''triple-threat'' services (voice, data, video).

History

The MVDDS service was created as a result of a "Spectrum Grab" by the now defunct Northpoint Technology LLC. While Northpoint was fighting with the DBS companies, MDS America Inc provided the FCC with engineering information to assist the FCC in formulating the first US MVDDS rules. MDS America was granted permission to conduct experimental testing of their service in Clewiston Florida. This testing was completed by LCC International under the direction of Dr. Bahman Badipour (now President and CEO of Analytical Consulting Services Inc.) in July 2001 and submitted to the FCC in October of that year.

FCC MVDDS auctions

MVDDS spectrum was auctioned by the FCC in two separate

auction An auction is usually a process of buying and selling goods or services by offering them up for bids, taking bids, and then selling the item to the highest bidder or buying the item from the lowest bidder. Some exceptions to this definition ex ...

s. The first was FCC auction 53 (1/14/2004 - 1/27/2004) and this auction with 14 qualified bidders lasted 49 rounds over 9 bidding days. 10 bidders won 192 licenses with Gross Bids of $136,936,200FCC Auction 53
/ref> Each allocated license is exclusive in one geographic area. The second was FCC auction 63 (12/7/2005 - 12/7/2005) and this auction with 3 qualified bidders lasted 3 rounds over 1 bidding day. 32 bidders won the remaining 22 licenses with Gross Bids of $204,000 MVDDS spectrum (214 licenses) is held by 11 companies, but the largest chunks are owned by three, South.com (an affiliate of

Dish Network DISH Network Corporation (DISH, an acronym for DIgital Sky Highway) is an American television provider and the owner of the direct-broadcast satellite provider Dish, commonly known as Dish Network, and the over-the-top IPTV service, Sling TV. A ...

) with 37 areas, DTV Norwich (an affiliate of

Cablevision Cablevision Systems Corporation was an American cable television company with systems serving areas surrounding New York City. It was the fifth-largest cable provider and ninth-largest television provider in the United States. Throughout its ex ...

) with 46 areas, and MDS Operations (an affiliate of

MDS America MDS America, Inc (MDSA) is a wireless Internet and wireless cable TV technology provider based in Stuart, Florida, US. MDS America was the primary party responsible for the invalidation of Northpoint Technology Inc's patents having to do with extr ...

) with 80 areas. In 2012 Dish Network acquired Cablevision's areas making Dish Network the largest owner of MVDDS spectrum in the US.

US Based MVDDS systems

The system listed below operates using MVDDS to cover an entire Metro area.Cibola Wireless
/ref> * Cibola Wireless Albuquerque, New Mexico This system was built by

, a US-based MVDDS company.

International MVDDS-like systems

Although MVDDS is a US only service, the systems listed below operate on similar frequencies to MVDDS but with differing power levels.MVDDS information
There are presently other countries using MVDDS for television signal delivery, these also being built by

, for example: *

United Arab Emirates The United Arab Emirates (UAE; ar, اَلْإِمَارَات الْعَرَبِيَة الْمُتَحِدَة ), or simply the Emirates ( ar, الِْإمَارَات ), is a country in Western Asia (The Middle East). It is located at th ...

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...

Notes

{{wireless video Network access

History

FCC MVDDS auctions

US Based MVDDS systems

International MVDDS-like systems

See also

Notes