LIRNEasia

The spectrum refarming process whereby frequencies currently used for low-value applications are cleared and reassigned for high-value applications is fraught with conceptual, economic and policy problems and is holding back the introduction of new services. For example, application of the principle of “beneficiary pays” yields a relatively simple solution when refarming results in private-property like rights being assigned to the beneficiary of the reassignment.

The payments made by the beneficiary can be used to compensate the former user whose equipment now has to be decommissioned/exported and who has to obtain new equipment to operate at another frequency. However, when the prospective use is for non-exclusive uses such as WiFi, there is no easy source of funds to compensate the existing user.

The research question for this study is whether the classic “beneficiary pays” model used in spectrum refarming requires modifications to work well in the government environments of emerging Asia. An additional question is how the problem of compensating users who have to relocate to allow the use of WiFi frequencies can be overcome.