THOMAS: OET WORK COMPLETE ON NEXTEL ORDER
The FCC Office of Engineering & Technology has largely wrapped up the technical work on new questions raised about assigning Nextel 2.1 GHz vs. 1.9 GHz spectrum, and other technical issues that are part of the 800 MHz rebanding plan, bureau Chief Edmond Thomas said Fri. That development means that only policy calls remain on one of the stickiest issues before the FCC.
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“The Commission has the technical stuff. We've done it all,” Thomas told us following a question and answer session with FCBA’s wireless committee: “Crunching numbers for the main is over. Right now it has been elevated to a policy level.”
Nextel is expected to make an additional filing in the 800 MHz docket, possibly offering other concessions to get the 1.9 GHz band it seeks over the next few days. Sources on both sides said the debate over the last week on the 8th floor on MMDS/ITFS took attention away from 800 MHz. The ITFS order was placed on the sunshine agenda Thurs. (CD June 4 p1), cutting off further outreach to the FCC and refocusing attention on the rebanding. Nextel CEO Timothy Donahue told a Friedman Billings Ramsey investment conference Thurs. that he hoped the Commission would make a decision on the 800 MHz order in July.
Meanwhile, Thomas reassured wireless carriers the FCC was taking their concerns that information on wireless infrastructure not fall into the hands of terrorists if FCC imposes service outage filing requirements. Carriers have called the filings a potential threat to national security (CD May 27 p1).
“That’s one of the most significant issues in my judgment around that,” Thomas replied. “That is a major, major concern to us. One of the things we're looking at very closely is how we can protect this information. There are a couple of ways we're thinking… The bottom line, let me assure you, is we're just as concerned about that as the industry. We've been working with DHS and others on that particular issue.”
Thomas said he would be “very surprised” if any developments limiting deployment of ultra-wideband in the U.S. come out of the 3rd ITU-R Task Group International Meeting to be held in Boston starting Wed. “We're in the forefront,” he said. “I'm going to England to talk to a bunch of [European Union] regulators to tell them where we are… The important thing is an exchange and an understanding of a point of view. We don’t have absolute locks on technology or knowledge. Obviously, one of the things we've got to keep exchanging information and that’s all good.”
Thomas conceded the U.S. by itself couldn’t completely block UWB from being looked at under an agenda item at the 2007 World Radiocommunication Conference: “Any nation could attempt to do anything it wants at the WRC… Europe, for instance, is having a hard time getting an agreement over what standard, if any, they want to support.”
Commenting on the FCC’s white spaces rulemaking, Thomas said the most vehement opposition appears to be coming from broadcaster associations, NAB and MSTV, rather than individual broadcasters. “There are some broadcasters who have personally told us they want to work with us and are reserving judgment,” he said. “I would be lying to you to tell you that the broadcasters support it. What I'm telling you is that a bunch of them, a rather significant bunch that I think you'll be hearing from over the next several months, are saying we're reserving judgment. We want to look at the item. And then we'll consider working with you.”
Thomas said he hoped the associations would also have an open mind. “Their associations, I'm hoping and praying, will eventually take a look at this and say, ‘Look, this is not the devil’s agent, there’s some opportunities there for us.'”