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FCC Proposal Brings WISPs Hope and Fear

As the FCC prepares to change the wireless broadband rules (perhaps for the better), WISPs share their hopes and fears about these new rules.

[May 18, 2004]

On the ISP-Wireless list last week, CB alerted the membership to an important FCC wireless broadband proposal, on which the FCC is seeking comment:

"I ran across this item this afternoon: http://hraunfoss.fcc.gov/edocs_public/attachmatch/DOC-247169A1.pdf

'In an initiative to increase the use of radio spectrum to provide greater service to the American public, the Commission today proposed to allow unlicensed devices to operate in the broadcast television spectrum at locations where the spectrum is not in use by television stations. In order to ensure that no interference is caused to TV stations and their viewers, the Commission proposed to require unlicensed devices to incorporate 'smart radio' features to identify unused TV channels.'

The smart radios sound kind of similar to the "listen before talk" in the satellite bands in the 3650 MHz band they were talking about a few weeks ago. Seems like a deal for NLOS—a whole lot more spectrum at lower frequencies to get through more trees.

I'm just a recent lurker. I'd appreciate y'all's thoughts and comments."

Some commentators were skeptical of the FCC's ability to do much for small businesses.

[PS worried] "Personally I think that's kind of dangerous. What happens if the cable company wants to turn up more analog channels at some point? We have been looking at 700 Mhz wireless for a while, trying to see if it'll fly here in Canada. We've been told numerous times 'good luck' because cable TV locally operates in those frequencies. We asked our cable department if this is true and they said we do actually have existing channels in those frequencies now and we are expanding them in the near future."

[RC agreed] "I saw this, too. But I see it as a loophole for allowing someone else to way overpower their unlicensed bands simply because no known uses are realized in the area. Its the precedent that I am afraid of. Currently, it is only be talked about in the TVD bands, but the concept could creep over into the unlicensed bands as well.

I realize that may be happening already in some areas, but if they make it legal, and some else comes in under this new guideline, then the FCC could say sorry about your luck, we didn't know you were there. That is were the problems starts. Now the unlicensed freq. are only free if you sign their registry.

Okay so I'm paranoid—but one must admit the potential or possibility is extremly likely."

JT voiced a different opinion:

"You are damned if you do and damned if you don't. You are right—the system doesn't reward those who follow the rules of the road and it doesn't punish those who break the rules, as it stands. That is changing, however.

I, like everyone else, see sub 1 Ghz spectrum as absolutely needed resource for operators.

However, the sub 1 Ghz spectrum is only useful if the rules prevent abuse, but reward those who follow the rules.

What the FCC proposed in the cognitive rules NPRM this year, will essentially give us more power, but only a few vendors right now have the money and the technology to obtain the higher power authorization. Thank God for that.

So likely, Motorola, Trango, Tranzeo, and so many others out there will unlikely be able to achieve the levels of throughput and penetration that say, a company like Alvarion or Aperto that is willing to spend the money in R&D to obtain cognitive authorization.

Rules like the cognitive changes proposed reward those that build products for us, and have an almost exclusive focus on our industry, and invest in building quality technology, and show's the 'johnny come latelys' of our industry, the door!

It acts to kick out the cheaters in class, essentially, financially rewarding those that play fair, and giving no financial rewards to those who "cheat".

Meaning: No one in their right mind will buy a cheap Tranzeo radio because they can get an Alvarion radio that works 10 times better for around the same price, anyways, due to interoperability, of WiMAX, and cognitive rule adherence.

End result:

We win, the bad guys lose."

—End