Company Wants FCC to Reallocate TV Spectrum for Mobile
Landover wants to manage reallocation of 554-608 MHz in exchange for a cut of the proceeds.
WASHINGTON, April 20, 2026 – A telecom company is asking federal regulators to make some broadcaster spectrum available for 5G and 6G wireless use. The company asked to be responsible for coordinating transfers with broadcasters and mobile carriers, which it said would be quicker than a government auction, in exchange for a cut of the proceeds.
The company, called Landover, has invested in and sold wireless networks in the U.S. and Europe. In a petition filed last week, Landover asked the Federal Communications Commission to initiate a rulemaking to begin the process of making 554-608 MegaHertz (MHz) available for mobile use.
Under Landover’s plan, broadcasters would come to the company and relinquish their spectrum licenses in exchange for some of the money once it’s sold. The company said it was already in touch with broadcasters and expected to secure commitments from some of the larger ones.
“The ten largest broadcast ownership groups collectively account for approximately 62% of the affected spectrum,” CEO Laurence Zimmerman wrote. “Landover expects to secure anchor commitments from a number of these Broadcasters, which would encourage and facilitate broader participation across remaining groups and stations.”
If that was enough to support a “uniform nationwide repurposing and repacking framework,” the company said it would ask the FCC to relocate broadcasters that didn’t voluntarily participate.
Broadcasters would be repacked below 554 MHz into NextGen TV channels, the company said.
Landover proposed the FCC put it in charge of the repacking logistics and transition timeline, plus selling off the broadcaster spectrum. The money would then be divided up among broadcasters’ relocation costs, broadcasters’ payment for giving up their spectrum, the treasury, and Landover’s payment for running the process.
Landover predicted the Treasury alone would pocket $15 billion from the plan. The company estimated it could acquire and sell the necessary spectrum in two years and that it would take another three to actually do all of the clearing, which it claimed would be faster than an FCC-run incentive auction process.
The band at issue contains 576 of the country’s 1,037 ultra-high frequency stations. The company pitched the idea as a way to provide more spectrum for direct-to-cell satellite service and needed cash to broadcasters as ad revenue and subscribers declined.
The filing was submitted April 15, just before the ongoing National Asociation of Broadcasters conference in Washington. Broadcasters haven’t submitted filings in support of the plan.
The industry has been wary of its spectrum being reallocated for other services in tower contexts. The FCC is preparing for an auction in the upper C-band next year, and broadcasters have told the agency they’re concerned about the video distribution services they rely on in the band being disrupted or degraded to satisfy carriers’ appetite for spectrum.
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