Sec. 22.602  Transition of the 2110-2130 and 2160-2180 MHz channels to 
          emerging technologies.

    The microwave channels listed in Sec. 22.591 have been allocated for 
use by emerging technologies (ET) services. No new systems will be 
authorized under this part. The rules in this section provide for a 
transition period during which existing Paging and Radiotelephone 
Service (PARS) licensees using these channels may relocate operations to 
other media or to other fixed channels, including those in other 
microwave bands. For PARS licensees relocating operations to other 
microwave bands, authorization must be obtained under part 101 of this 
chapter.
    (a) Licensees proposing to implement ET services may negotiate with 
PARS licensees authorized to use these channels, for the purpose of 
agreeing to terms under which the PARS licensees would--
    (1) Relocate their operations to other fixed microwave bands or 
other media, or alternatively,
    (2) Accept a sharing arrangement with the ET licensee that may 
result in an otherwise impermissible level of interference to the PARS 
operations.
    (b) PARS operations on these channels will continue to be co-primary 
with other users of this spectrum until two years after the FCC 
commences acceptance of applications for ET services, and until one year 
after an ET licensee initiates negotiations for relocation of the fixed 
microwave licensee's operations.
    (c) Voluntary Negotiations. During the two year voluntary 
negotiation period, negotiations are strictly voluntary and are not 
defined by any parameters. However, if the parties have not reached an 
agreement within one year after the commencement of the voluntary 
period, the PARS licensee must allow the ET licensee (if it so chooses) 
to gain access to the existing facilities to be relocated so that an 
independent third party can examine the PARS licensee's 2 GHz system and 
prepare an estimate of the cost and the time needed to relocate the PARS 
licensee to comparable facilities. The ET licensee must pay for any such 
estimate.
    (d) Mandatory Negotiations. If a relocation agreement is not reached 
during the two year voluntary period, the ET licensee may initiate a 
mandatory negotiation period. This mandatory period is triggered at the 
option of the ET licensee, but ET licensees may not invoke their right 
to mandatory negotiation until the voluntary negotiation

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period has expired. Once mandatory negotiations have begun, a PARS 
licensee may not refuse to negotiate and all parties are required to 
negotiate in good faith. Good faith requires each party to provide 
information to the other that is reasonably necessary to facilitate the 
relocation process. In evaluating claims that a party has not negotiated 
in good faith, the FCC will consider, inter alia, the following factors:
    (1) Whether the ET licensee has made a bona fide offer to relocate 
the PARS licensee to comparable facilities in accordance with Section 
101.75(b) of this chapter;
    (2) If the PARS licensee has demanded a premium, the type of premium 
requested (e.g., whether the premium is directly related to relocation, 
such as system-wide relocations and analog-to-digital conversions, 
versus other types of premiums), and whether the value of the premium as 
compared to the cost of providing comparable facilities is 
disproportionate (i.e., whether there is a lack of proportion or 
relation between the two);
    (3) What steps the parties have taken to determine the actual cost 
of relocation to comparable facilities;
    (4) Whether either party has withheld information requested by the 
other party that is necessary to estimate relocation costs or to 
facilitate the relocation process. Any party alleging a violation of our 
good faith requirement must attach an independent estimate of the 
relocation costs in question to any documentation filed with the 
Commission in support of its claim. An independent cost estimate must 
include a specification for the comparable facility and a statement of 
the costs associated with providing that facility to the incumbent 
licensee.
    (e) Involuntary period. After the periods specified in paragraph (b) 
of this section have expired, ET licensees may initiate involuntary 
relocation procedures under the Commission's rules. ET licensees are 
obligated to pay to relocate only the specific microwave links to which 
their systems pose an interference problem. Under involuntary 
relocation, a PARS licensee is required to relocate, provided that:
    (1) The ET applicant, provider, licensee or representative 
guarantees payment of relocation costs, including all engineering, 
equipment, site and FCC fees, as well as any legitimate and prudent 
transaction expenses incurred by the PARS licensee that are directly 
attributable to an involuntary relocation, subject to a cap of two 
percent of the hard costs involved. Hard costs are defined as the actual 
costs associated with providing a replacement system, such as equipment 
and engineering expenses. ET licensees are not required to pay PARS 
licensees for internal resources devoted to the relocation process. ET 
licensees are not required to pay for transaction costs incurred by PARS 
licensees during the voluntary or mandatory periods once the involuntary 
period is initiated or for fees that cannot be legitimately tied to the 
provision of comparable facilities;
    (2) The ET applicant, provider, licensee or representative completes 
all activities necessary for implementing the replacement facilities, 
including engineering and cost analysis of the relocation procedure and, 
if radio facilities are involved, identifying and obtaining, on the 
incumbents behalf, new channels and frequency coordination; and,
    (3) The ET applicant, provider, licensee or representative builds 
the replacement system and tests it for comparability with the existing 
2 GHz system.
    (f) Comparable Facilities. The replacement system provided to an 
incumbent during an involuntary relocation must be at least equivalent 
to the existing PARS system with respect to the following three factors:
    (1) Throughput. Communications throughput is the amount of 
information transferred within a system in a given amount of time. If 
analog facilities are being replaced with analog, the ET licensee is 
required to provide the PARS licensee with an equivalent number of 4 kHz 
voice channels. If digital facilities are being replaced with digital, 
the ET licensee must provide the PARS licensee with equivalent data 
loading bits per second (bps). ET licensees must provide PARS licensees 
with enough throughput to satisfy the PARS licensee's system use at the 
time

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of relocation, not match the total capacity of the PARS system.
    (2) Reliability. System reliability is the degree to which 
information is transferred accurately within a system. ET licensees must 
provide PARS licensees with reliability equal to the overall reliability 
of their system. For digital data systems, reliability is measured by 
the percent of time the bit error rate (BER) exceeds a desired value, 
and for analog or digital voice transmissions, it is measured by the 
percent of time that audio signal quality meets an established 
threshold. If an analog voice system is replaced with a digital voice 
system, only the resulting frequency response, harmonic distortion, 
signal-to-noise ratio and its reliability will be considered in 
determining comparable reliability.
    (3) Operating Costs. Operating costs are the cost to operate and 
maintain the PARS system. ET licensees must compensate PARS licensees 
for any increased recurring costs associated with the replacement 
facilities (e.g. additional rental payments, increased utility fees) for 
five years after relocation. ET licensees may satisfy this obligation by 
making a lump-sum payment based on present value using current interest 
rates. Additionally, the maintenance costs to the PARS licensee must be 
equivalent to the 2 GHz system in order for the replacement system to be 
considered comparable.
    (g) The PARS licensee is not required to relocate until the 
alternative facilities are available to it for a reasonable time to make 
adjustments, determine comparability, and ensure a seamless handoff.
    (h) The Commission's Twelve-Month Trial Period. If, within one year 
after the relocation to new facilities, the PARS licensee demonstrates 
that the new facilities are not comparable to the former facilities, the 
ET applicant, provider, licensee or representative must remedy the 
defects or pay to relocate the PARS licensee to one of the following: 
its former or equivalent 2 GHz channels, another comparable frequency 
band, a land-line system, or any other facility that satisfies the 
requirements specified in paragraph (f) of this section. This trial 
period commences on the date that the PARS licensee begins full 
operation of the replacement link. If the PARS licensee has retained its 
2 GHz authorization during the trial period, it must return the license 
to the Commission at the end of the twelve months.
    (i) After April 25, 1996, all major modifications and extensions to 
existing PARS systems operating on channels in the 2110-2130 and 2160-
2180 MHz bands will be authorized on a secondary basis to future ET 
operations. All other modifications will render the modified PARS 
license secondary to future ET operations unless the incumbent 
affirmatively justifies primary status and the incumbent PARS licensee 
establishes that the modification would not add to the relocation costs 
of ET licensees. Incumbent PARS licensees will maintain primary status 
for the following technical changes:
    (1) Decreases in power;
    (2) Minor changes (increases or decreases) in antenna height;
    (3) Minor location changes (up to two seconds);
    (4) Any data correction which does not involve a change in the 
location of an existing facility;
    (5) Reductions in authorized bandwidth;
    (6) Minor changes (increases or decreases) in structure height;
    (7) Changes (increases or decreases) in ground elevation that do not 
affect centerline height;
    (8) Minor equipment changes.
    (j) Sunset. PARS licensees will maintain primary status in the 2110-
2130 and 2160-2180 MHz bands unless and until an ET licensee requires 
use of the spectrum. ET licensees are not required to pay relocation 
costs after the relocation rules sunset (i.e. ten years after the 
voluntary period begins for the first ET licensees in the service). Once 
the relocation rules sunset, an ET licensee may require the incumbent to 
cease operations, provided that the ET licensee intends to turn on a 
system within interference range of the incumbent, as determined by TIA 
Bulletin 10-F or any standard successor. ET licensee notification to the 
affected PARS licensee must be in writing and must provide the incumbent 
with no less than six months to vacate the spectrum. After the six-month 
notice

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period has expired, the PARS licensee must turn its license back into 
the Commission, unless the parties have entered into an agreement which 
allows the PARS licensee to continue to operate on a mutually agreed 
upon basis. If the parties cannot agree on a schedule or an alternative 
arrangement, requests for extension will be accepted and reviewed on a 
case-by-case basis. The Commission will grant such extensions only if 
the incumbent can demonstrate that:
    (1) It cannot relocate within the six-month period (e.g., because no 
alternative spectrum or other reasonable option is available), and;
    (2) The public interest would be harmed if the incumbent is forced 
to terminate operations (e.g., if public safety communications services 
would be disrupted).
[ 61 FR 29689 , June 12, 1996]