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Wavelengths
FCC needs to let Sprint off the
hook
By Glenn Bischoff
May 16, 2008
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit recently
ruled against Sprint Nextel in its dispute over when the nation’s
third-largest carrier must vacate its interleaved channels in the 800
MHz band, which is being reconfigured to alleviate interference to
public safety operations.
The FCC mandated that the channels be cleared by June 26. Sprint wanted
the deadline extended, reasoning that no public safety licensees would
be prepared to migrate to those channels by the deadline—indeed, the
FCC has yet to establish a procedure for public safety entities to apply
for slices of the interleaved spectrum—and that a premature migration
would have a profoundly negative impact on its iDEN operations in the
band.
The D.C. Circuit’s decision was a win for the FCC. Now that it has had
a week or so to bask in its victory, the commission needs to forget the
ruling and relax the deadline before it’s too late.
Some believe the ruling gives the FCC a club it can use against Sprint
to speed up the rebanding process. While leverage always is a nifty
thing to have at one’s disposal, I’m hard-pressed to see how this
will make the carrier move any faster. Sprint already has all the
financial incentive it needs. It has spent more than a billion dollars
on rebanding thus far and believes it might spend as much as $3.4
billion before all is said and done. Every day that rebanding drags on
costs Sprint a bundle.
Forcing Sprint to move its iDEN customers to other frequencies—even on
a temporary basis—and then back to the carrier’s new 800 MHz
channels will be pricey. Analysts have pegged the costs at between $1
billion and $2.8 billion. Even for a company the size of Sprint Nextel,
that’s a significant number.
How might such a financial hit affect Sprint? For starters, it could
force the carrier to significantly curtail capital investment, which
would hurt it competitively against archrivals Verizon Wireless and AT&T
Mobility, both of which recently announced aggressive rollouts of 4G
platforms to be completed by 2010.
Sprint might pass some of the costs along to its customers. Or it could
slash operating costs, which likely would result in significant job
losses, something no one—especially those in Washington, D.C., who are
seeking re-election this year—wants to see. Layoffs, in turn, would
have a detrimental effect on network performance and customer service.
All of this would hurt the carrier in the marketplace.
I have no idea whether FCC Chairman Kevin Martin aspires to higher
political office. But if he does, I’m thinking he’s not going to
want any of these scenarios on his resume, particularly when holding
Sprint’s feet to the coals on this matter won’t appreciably speed up
the rebanding effort.
Not only would cutting Sprint some slack be politically expedient over
the long haul, it also would be equitable. Sprint has oft repeated its
pledge to comply with the FCC’s requirement that it must vacate
Channel 1-120 frequencies within 60 days of a request of a NPSPAC
licensee. That should be enough.
E-mail me at gbischoff@mrtmag.com.
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In the News
Harman
proposes PSST funding bill
By Donny Jackson
May 16, 2008
MRT
Rep. Jane Harman (D-Calif.) yesterday introduced
legislation that would authorize as much as $2 million in grants to the
700 MHz public-safety broadband licensee—currently the Public Safety
Spectrum Trust (PSST)—during 2009 and 2010 to pay its operating costs
incurred while pursuing a public-private partnership with the winner of
the D Block auction for a nationwide network.
FCC seeks comments
on D Block reauction
By Donny Jackson
May 15, 2008
MRT
After a proposed public-private partnership for a
nationwide public-safety network failed to attract a qualifying bid in
the recent 700 MHz auction, the FCC yesterday unanimously adopted a
notice of proposed rulemaking that seeks ideas for a reauction of the 10
MHz D Block.
EFJ partners with
Virginia Tech
By Donny Jackson
May 14, 2008
MRT
EFJ announced a partnership with Virginia Tech
University that is designed to help the company develop advanced
wireless products, including software-defined radio (SDR) for its
defense and public-safety customers.
Click here for more
news stories
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Nebraska
State Patrol selects Tiburon records management system
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D.C. National
Guard deploys SkyPort solutions
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Sprint
affiliate sues to block wireless deal
Denver Post
Boeing
launches wideband SATCOM system
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Technologies unveils RF amplifiers
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In Print
Let the
buyer beware
By Lynnette Luna
May 1, 2008
MRT
High-profile shootings at universities and major weather
incidents such as hurricanes and floods have driven the proliferation of
companies providing emergency alert services via mobile devices across
campuses, large cities and even entire regions. But mobile operators now
are warning that messages won't always reach recipients in a timely
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