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IP: The specter of spectrum jam is with us, always
From: David Farber <dave () farber net>
Date: Mon, 02 Apr 2001 04:17:07 -0400
From: "Janos Gereben~" <janos451 () earthlink net> To: "jg" <janos451 () earthlink net> Subject: The specter of spectrum jam is with us, always Date: Sun, 1 Apr 2001 17:11:58 -0700 X-Mailer: Microsoft Outlook Express 6.00.2462.0000 April 2, 2001 Stephen Labaton NYTimes Service / International Herald-Tribune WASHINGTON - Three government studies have cast new doubt on an ambitious plan handed down late last year by President Bill Clinton to find new space on the congested airwaves, clouding an effort seen as an essential step toward the future of a new generation of handheld wireless devices capable of browsing the Internet at high speeds. . An executive order by Mr. Clinton last October called for a top-to-bottom review of the way the government and commercial interests use the spectrum. The move was a prelude to a huge licensing auction next year for the wireless telephone companies, which say that the licenses are critical for the development of the technology. . But the studies of military, government and commercial users of the airwaves concluded, in effect, that the spectrum has become the technological equivalent of Jerusalem - overcrowded real estate with little room for coexistence between the current tenants, who refuse to give up space to the competing claims of outsiders. . The studies issued Friday by the Federal Communications Commission, the Commerce Department and the Pentagon drew no policy conclusions as to which license-holders should be forced to move or who should bear the high costs of such reallocations. But they describe billions of dollars in potential costs and disruptions associated with such moves, and, on top of that, predict significant technical hardships for the current owners of licenses and national security problems for the military. . The Federal Communications Commission report, for instance, concluded that there was "no readily identifiable alternate frequency band that could accommodate a substantial relocation" of the users of the bands it had studied. . The Pentagon, meanwhile, concluded that it would be unable to vacate the frequencies it has held "until well beyond the timelines established" by the Clinton directive, and that policymakers should look toward commercial users to find new sources of spectrum. . The Clinton-ordered review has prompted a fierce political and lobbying battle between the wireless telephone companies, which hunger for more licenses, and current license-holders. They include the military, religious and educational broadcasters, and companies such as WorldCom Inc. and Sprint Corp., which are in the process of developing a new high-speed Internet service to homes. Some of the world's largest telecommunications equipment makers, including Motorola Inc., Cisco Systems Inc. and LM Ericsson AB. have also joined the lobbying fray, staking positions depending on where they see their future markets. . But taken together, the voluminous reports paint a picture that will make it difficult for the wireless telephone companies to prevail in the battle over bandwidth now taking place in Washington. . "Based on these studies and what I hear in the political debate, there's significant doubt that there will be spectrum available for an auction by 2002," said Blair Levin, a former top Federal Communications Commission official who is now an analyst at Legg Mason. "It's a political problem. The question is whether the administration will make it a priority to free up the spectrum." . Michael Powell, the Federal Communications Commission chairman, has signaled his frustration with the problems, noting recently that the ultimate decisions about where to find new sources of spectrum are "with people above my pay-grade." . The Bush administration, further complicating the political equation, has moved at a snail's pace in filling vacancies at the Federal Communications Commission and the National Telecommunications and Information Administration. . The impasse was evident at a news briefing Friday morning were officials from the Commerce and Defense departments sat uncomfortably together as a rear admiral overseeing communications strategy for the military explained why it would be too costly and too expensive to move out of its space any time in the next decade or longer. Pentagon officials have said policymakers should look to commercial users of the spectrum to find new space for new high speed Internet. . Officials in the cellular telephone industry said Friday that they were not surprised by the findings of the report and that they hoped a deal to open bandwidth was still possible. . "It sounds to me as though the department of defense has declared war on churches and educational services," said Tom Wheeler, president of the Cellular Telecommunications and Internet Association, the wireless industry's main trade group. "I still continue to believe that because this is just an interim report there are ways that creative people can find spectrum." ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Janos Gereben/SF, CA janos451 () earthlink net
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