On the Application of Blockchains to Spectrum Management

5 IEEE Transactions on Cognitive Communications and Networking 193 (June 2019)

14 Pages Posted: 16 Mar 2018 Last revised: 17 Apr 2020

See all articles by Martin B. H. Weiss

Martin B. H. Weiss

University of Pittsburgh - School of Computing and Information

Kevin Werbach

University of Pennsylvania, The Wharton School, Legal Studies & Business Ethics Department

Douglas Sicker

University of Colorado at Boulder - Department of Computer Science; University of Colorado at Denver

Carlos Caicedo

Syracuse University - School of Information Studies

Amer Malki

University of Pittsburgh- School of Computing and Information; Taibah University- College of Science and Computer Engineering

Date Written: June 2019

Abstract

Spectrum sharing mechanisms have evolved since the early 2000s to meet different needs related to increasing spectrum use efficiency, through mechanisms such as database-driven Spectrum Access Systems (SAS) as well as License Shared Access (LSA). Satisfying continued growth in demand for wireless communications will require further advances in spectrum sharing. This paper considers the application of blockchain technology to this challenge.

The emergence of the cryptocurrency Bitcoin has stimulated efforts to apply its underlying technologies to contexts beyond digital payments. Radio spectrum management represents a promising use case. While blockchains could underlie spectrum management more broadly, we focus on dynamic spectrum sharing applications. Like the cooperative approaches currently in use, blockchain is a database technology. Unlike the SAS and LSA approaches, a blockchain is a decentralized database in which the owner of the data maintains control, even when information is shared across organizational boundaries.

Blockchains could be used to enhance the effectiveness of various forms of spectrum sharing interactions. Information about access rights and usage can be recorded on a distributed ledger and managed using smart contracts. Blockchain could provide a trusted and secure platform for many spectrum management operations in spectrum sharing scenarios. Compared to traditional databases, potential benefits of blockchain-based systems include:

• Decentralization (no trusted intermediary needed to validate transactions)
• Transparency (transaction information available for entities to review)
• Immutability (information once recorded is difficult to tamper with)
• Availability (replication of data across many independent network nodes)
• Security (all transactions digitally signed and the ledger itself secured through a combination of cryptography and economic incentives)

There are, however, tradeoffs involved in blockchain’s decentralized architecture. For example, blockchains typically do not offer the same performance as traditional databases, especially compared to highly-optimized transaction processing systems. The technology in general is immature. And there are a variety of different ways blockchain can be implemented, such as public (open to all) vs. permissioned (only authorized parties can access the network), which have implications for performance, security, and governance.

We consider the benefits and limitations of blockchain technology for four forms of spectrum sharing: unlicensed (primary non-cooperative), secondary markets (primary cooperative), opportunistic (secondary non-cooperative), and cooperative sharing (secondary cooperative). We find that blockchain-based systems could provide a range of benefits including: Increased speed in the evaluation of available spectrum resources; facilitating sophisticated dynamic and rule-based spectrum trading transactions through self-executing smart contracts; generation of auditable, unified transaction records; and helping regulators to evaluate spectrum access efficiency. Under each scenario, we map out where blockchain could provide the greatest value, and how it could be implemented most effectively.

Keywords: spectrum, blockchain, wireless, distributed ledger technology, spectrum sharing

Suggested Citation

Weiss, Martin B. H. and Werbach, Kevin and Sicker, Douglas and Sicker, Douglas and Caicedo, Carlos and Malki, Amer and Malki, Amer, On the Application of Blockchains to Spectrum Management (June 2019). 5 IEEE Transactions on Cognitive Communications and Networking 193 (June 2019), Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=3141910.

Martin B. H. Weiss

University of Pittsburgh - School of Computing and Information ( email )

135 N Bellefield Ave
Pittsburgh, PA 15260
United States

Kevin Werbach (Contact Author)

University of Pennsylvania, The Wharton School, Legal Studies & Business Ethics Department ( email )

3730 Walnut Street
Suite 600
Philadelphia, PA 19104-6365
United States
215-898-1222 (Phone)

Douglas Sicker

University of Colorado at Boulder - Department of Computer Science ( email )

Boulder, CO
United States

University of Colorado at Denver ( email )

Box 173364
1250 14th Street
Denver, CO 80217
United States

Carlos Caicedo

Syracuse University - School of Information Studies ( email )

Hinds Hall
Syracuse, NY 13244
United States

Amer Malki

Taibah University- College of Science and Computer Engineering ( email )

Yanbu, Madinah
Saudi Arabia

University of Pittsburgh- School of Computing and Information ( email )

United States
6176693889 (Phone)
4126245231 (Fax)

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