Patent ID: 8694035

Claim:
A wireless communications method comprising: defining an exclusion zone in proximity to a first wireless communications system, by transmission of a system beacon signal from a gateway of the first wireless communications system, the first wireless communications system using a different radio access network from that of a second wireless communications system, the exclusion zone indicating that any user equipment within the exclusion zone is not permitted to communicate with the second wireless communications system using a portion of spectrum which has been pre-assigned to the first wireless communications system and which is currently re-assigned to the second wireless communications system by a spectrum assignment process; calculating a difference between a measured level of interference and a maximum acceptable level of interference inflicted on the first wireless communications system, controlling a local size of a part of the exclusion zone in dependence on the difference; transmitting from a base station of the first wireless communications system a local beacon signal, the strength of which indicates only the size of a local part of the exclusion zone, and adjusting the strength of the local beacon signal in order to control the local size of the part of the exclusion zone.