A Petition for Rulemaking has been filed by Cambium Networks and several non-profits to open the 10.0-10.5 GHz band for commercial use. They have made a nod to amateur radio, perhaps to minimize public opposition, by proposing a coordination system.
I drafted most of the petition, which is by the Coordinated Sharing Coalition, led by the Wireless ISP Association. The idea is to open the band for limited-power point-to-point (unprotected) microwave use, because other bands are congested, using an Automated Frequency Coordination (AFC) system that protects both federal incumbents and Amateurs who register with it. I intentionally put our new class of licensed users behind Amateur in precedence, and the Coalition members agree. These radios must have tight (but not as tight as protected Fixed Service microwave) directional antennas (the Petition calls for a 5.5 degree maximum 3 dB beamwidth), and must check in daily with the AFC to see what frequencies are available for use on that path. As a ham bennie, it also says that while the radios used in that Part 101 service must contact the AFC daily and be limited to 100 mW conducted power, licensed Amateurs should be able to have the radios unlocked to use any frequency and power that the radio can handle. So this can create availability of 10 GHz radios. The mobile industry is trying to grab our microwave bands for auctioned exclusive use, and this is a way to create more use of an existing band that they have their eyes on, so that it doesn't become another lost 3 GHz band.
