IP: SATELLITE RADIO OPERATORS COMPLAIN ABOUT WI-FI INTERFERENCE

[Dave Farber <dave () farber net>]

Sounds to me like a appropriate subject for the FCC  Technical Advisory
Council. Lots of good brains there and not all that much asked of them.

Dave

Member of the TAC and former CT

------ Forwarded Message
From: Dewayne Hendricks <dewayne () warpspeed com>
\
[Note:  The WSJ's take on the Sirius petition.  Pay heed to the
'meltdown' comment from Powell!  DLH]

SATELLITE RADIO OPERATORS COMPLAIN ABOUT WI-FI INTERFERENCE

XM Satellite Radio and Sirius Satellite Radio have petitioned the FCC to
regulate Wi-Fi technology more closely, threatening to stymie innovation in
the nascent wireless technology market. The satellite radio broadcasters
say that even though Wi-Fi operates on a different frequency, the
frequencies are so close that it's possible for energy to leak over from
Wi-Fi devices and interfere with their services. They're asking the FCC to
set limits on the services, although they say they're not trying to shut
them down. "I think wireless devices are going to blossom," says Sirius
co-founder Robert Briskman, who says Wi-Fi device manufacturers could
alleviate the problem by installing filters and making other changes to
wireless transmitters. Wi-Fi advocates say their systems comply with
current FCC rules and that if the satellite radio folks are worried about
interference, they should tinker with their own systems. Meanwhile, FCC
Chairman Michael Powell is keeping mum on the satellite proposals, but has
cautioned that heavy usage of Wi-Fi and other devices that use unlicensed
frequencies could eventually cause a "meltdown." (Wall Street Journal 1 Apr
2002)

<http://online.wsj.com/article/0,,SB1017613134883515920.djm,00.html>
(sub req'd)



------ End of Forwarded Message

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