|
Genachowski Cites Interoperability Problems in Letter to Waxman (7/27/10)
FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski cited numerous problems with public-safety communications and a lack of interoperability in a five-page response to lawmakers’ questions on public-safety interoperability and the D block.
Genachowski said the lack of vendor competition — with Motorola estimated as controlling 80 percent of the market— lack of a completed Project 25 (P25) standards suite and the proprietary nature of public-safety communications equipment all hinder interoperability. “Project 25 (P25), the leading standard for public-safety narrowband communications, has taken more than 20 years to develop and is still not complete,” Genachowski said in the letter. “Though similar in function to P25, TETRA products are both more spectrally efficient than P25 and significantly cheaper. Our information suggests that this is the result of a competitive marketplace based on open standards.” TETRA is a public-safety communications standard used outside North America.
The letter was sent to Henry Waxman, chairman of the House Commerce Committee, and cites the FCC’s national broadband plan as a step toward improved interoperability, including its “incentive-based partnership approach that leverages commercial technology and economies of scale, including the commercial deployment of a broadband wireless network using the D block,” the letter said. “By leveraging commercial broadband deployment for consumers in the 700 MHz band, public safety will have access to lower-cost equipment and devices, additional capacity, and increased redundancy and resiliency.
Genachowski also cited the FCC’s newly established Emergency Response Interoperability Center (ERIC) to create a national framework for the deployment and operation of an interoperable public-safety broadband network.
Waxman has circulated draft legislation that aligns with the FCC’s D block auction plans. Most public-safety officials oppose auctioning the D block. The full text of Genachowski’s letter is here.
Your comments are welcome, click here.
Copyright © 2000 - 2010, Pandata Corp., All Rights Reserved.
Privacy Policy and Legal Statement.
|
