Border Interference: Resolving the 2.5GHz Spectrum Issues with Canada

In 2010, Canada adopted the International Telecommunications Union (ITU) band plan allowing for both paired Frequency Division Duplexing (FDD) and unpaired TDD operations in the 2.5GHz band after the US adopted a band plan allows for only unpaired or Time Division Duplexing (TDD) operations

At the time Canada's Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada (ISED) noted the ITU band plan would:

• allow the deployment of both FDD and TDD systems;
• permit global harmonization, thus enabling economies of scale for equipment and international roaming; and
• enable access to a wider range of services and applications which were expected to be developed on a global basis.

Below is Canada's Broadband Radio Service band plan from Spektrum Metric's Web Spectrum Viewer.  This band plan provides FDD/Downlink operation on the upper NR Band 7 channels, FDD/Uplink on the lower NR Band 7 channels, and TDD operation on the NR Band 38 channels in the middle.

Displayed next is the USA Educational Broadcast Service (EBS) / Broadband Radio Service (BRS), where TDD service is deployed across the entire NR 41band.  The ITU NR Bands are indicates as references.

In January, ISED announced a proceeding to evaluate transiting from the ITU band to the US configuration would provide these key benefits:

• support long-term and sustainable use of the band for 5G and future networks;
• facilitate cross-border coordination with the U.S.;
• allow Canadian licensees to benefit from the large TDD equipment ecosystem.

Currently along the border the FDD systems interfere the TDD systems, the TDD systems interfere with the FDD systems, and even the mutual TDD systems in the middle of the band can interference with each other if they aren't tied to the same timing source.