Southern Linc Raises Concerns on Wireless Resiliency Order
Southern Linc representatives raised concerns about an order circulated by FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel two weeks ago aimed at making wireless networks more resilient during disasters, in a call with an aide to Commissioner Geoffrey Starks. The Southern Linc representatives…
Sign up for a free preview to unlock the rest of this article
Communications Daily is required reading for senior executives at top telecom corporations, law firms, lobbying organizations, associations and government agencies (including the FCC). Join them today!
said they hadn't seen the order. "Any rules that may be adopted should not be overly prescriptive and should include sufficient flexibility for smaller, non-nationwide carriers with more limited resources," said a filing posted Wednesday in docket 21-346. "Any requirements regarding roaming during disasters must take into account the fact that smaller regional and rural carriers generally do not have the spectrum or network capacity to support a surge of incoming roaming traffic from a much larger nationwide carrier," the company said: "Even when a roaming agreement is already in place activating in-market roaming for an emergency event is not as simple as 'flipping a switch' but instead requires several hours of dedicated time to implement any necessary network changes to enable roaming in the specific areas where it is needed."