[opendtv] News: WHITE SPACE PROPONENTS TO FCC: TAKE IT SLOW
- From: Craig Birkmaier <craig@xxxxxxxxx>
- To: OpenDTV Mail List <opendtv@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Thu, 20 Sep 2007 07:36:54 -0400
http://www.tvnewsday.com/articles/2007/09/19/daily.4/
WHITE SPACE PROPONENTS TO FCC: TAKE IT SLOW
TVNEWSDAY, SEP. 19, 8:56 AM ET
Stung by negative results of FCC testing, the high-tech firms
advocating unlicensed wireless devices on vacant TV channels want the
FCC to consider the results of their latest field tests, even if it
means delaying a planned October vote.
By Kim McAvoy
The White Spaces Coalition may have just blinked in its high-stakes
showdown with broadcasters.
Story continues after the ad
The Coalition of high-tech firms that had been pushing hard for an
FCC vote next month that would permit unlicensed wireless devices to
use the vacant TV broadcast channels in each market-the so-called
white spaces-is now asking the agency to take its time and consider
new data that it will be submitting, possibly as early as this week.
The Coalition believes the new data, results of field testing on
devices in New York and California, will refute allegations that the
unlicensed devices will cause devastating interference to digital TV
reception and derail the DTV transition.
"Hopefully the commission will accept that data as verification that
the Coalition's proposal is a good one," said Ed Thomas, a former FCC
chief engineer who now represents the Coalition, which includes
Microsoft, Google, Philips, Intel, Dell, HP and others.
"But if the commission doesn't accept it, our preference is that they
be given the time in order to do their own independent justification
and validations as opposed to ruling just because they said they were
going to rule in October.
"We would provide them with whatever support is necessary for them to
do it on an expedited fashion including providing them personnel if
they want it," he said.
Last week, according to FCC filings, representatives of Microsoft and
Dell contacted FCC Commissioner Michael Copps, thought to be one of
the Coalition sympathizers, saying they would not mind if the vote
slipped slightly.
The FCC has set a timetable that calls for a vote in October. The
last word from Chairman Kevin Martin is that he is sticking to the
schedule.
That the Coalition is tapping the brakes on the proceeding may be a
tacit admission that it has lost ground since the FCC released the
negative results of its testing of white space devices and evidence
that the broadcasters' increasingly aggressive campaign against
unlicensed white space devices is having an effect.
Early last week, the NAB and the Association for Maximum Service
Television ratcheted up their lobbying efforts. Following a Monday
press conference at NAB headquarters, a contingent of broadcasters
and their Washington reps visited all the commissioners arguing that
unlicensed devices in the broadcast band would hobble the new digital
broadcast TV service.
The broadcasters' cause was strengthened-and the Coalition's
weakened-in July by results of the FCC's testing of unlicensed device
prototypes. The FCC found them seriously lacking and "capable of
causing interference."
The broadcasters needed the help.
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