The FCC relaxed the out-of-band emissions (OOBE) limits...

The FCC relaxed the out-of-band emissions (OOBE) limits for Broadband Radio Service and Educational Broadband Service licensees. Much of the 2.5 GHz spectrum is in the hands of Sprint. The change will “facilitate the use of wider channels,” which in turn means faster data rates and allows the adoption of such technologies as LTE-advanced (http://bit.ly/1jidEWc), the FCC said in an order Monday. “The record shows that changes to our OOBE standards are necessary to facilitate development of a device ecosystem that would fully take advantage of wider channels in the 2.5 GHz band.” The change conforms FCC rules to emission mask standards established by 3GPP for 20 megahertz channels, allowing manufactures to produce equipment that can be used outside the U.S., the agency said. The 3GPP organization develops global standards for LTE. The change can also be made “without materially increasing the potential for harmful interference” to licensees in adjacent bands, the FCC said.