https://urgentcomm.com/wp-content/themes/ucm_child/assets/images/logo/footer-new-logo.png
  • Home
  • News
  • Multimedia
    • Back
    • Multimedia
    • Video
    • Podcasts
    • Galleries
  • Commentary
    • Back
    • Commentary
    • Urgent Matters
    • View From The Top
    • All Things IWCE
    • Legal Matters
  • Resources
    • Back
    • Resources
    • Webinars
    • White Papers
    • Reprints & Reuse
  • IWCE
    • Back
    • IWCE
    • Conference
    • Special Events
    • Exhibitor Listings
    • Premier Partners
    • Floor Plan
    • Exhibiting Information
    • Register for IWCE
  • About Us
    • Back
    • About Us
    • Contact Us
    • Advertise
    • Terms of Service
    • Privacy Statement
    • Cookies Policy
  • Related Sites
    • Back
    • American City & County
    • IWCE
    • Light Reading
    • IOT World Today
    • Mission Critical Technologies
    • Microwave/RF
    • T&D World
    • TU-Auto
  • In the field
    • Back
    • In the field
    • Broadband Push-to-X
    • Internet of Things
    • Project 25
    • Public-Safety Broadband/FirstNet
    • Virtual/Augmented Reality
    • Land Mobile Radio
    • Long Term Evolution (LTE)
    • Applications
    • Drones/Robots
    • IoT/Smart X
    • Software
    • Subscriber Devices
    • Video
  • Call Center/Command
    • Back
    • Call Center/Command
    • Artificial Intelligence
    • NG911
    • Alerting Systems
    • Analytics
    • Dispatch/Call-taking
    • Incident Command/Situational Awareness
    • Tracking, Monitoring & Control
  • Network Tech
    • Back
    • Network Tech
    • Interoperability
    • LMR 100
    • LMR 200
    • Backhaul
    • Deployables
    • Power
    • Tower & Site
    • Wireless Networks
    • Coverage/Interference
    • Security
    • System Design
    • System Installation
    • System Operation
    • Test & Measurement
  • Operations
    • Back
    • Operations
    • Critical Infrastructure
    • Enterprise
    • Federal Government/Military
    • Public Safety
    • State & Local Government
    • Training
  • Regulations
    • Back
    • Regulations
    • Narrowbanding
    • T-Band
    • Rebanding
    • TV White Spaces
    • None
    • Funding
    • Policy
    • Regional Coordination
    • Standards
  • Organizations
    • Back
    • Organizations
    • AASHTO
    • APCO
    • DHS
    • DMR Association
    • ETA
    • EWA
    • FCC
    • IWCE
    • NASEMSO
    • NATE
    • NXDN Forum
    • NENA
    • NIST/PSCR
    • NPSTC
    • NTIA/FirstNet
    • P25 TIG
    • TETRA + CCA
    • UTC
Urgent Communications
  • NEWSLETTER
  • Home
  • News
  • Multimedia
    • Back
    • Video
    • Podcasts
    • Omdia Crit Comms Circle Podcast
    • Galleries
    • IWCE’s Video Showcase
  • Commentary
    • Back
    • All Things IWCE
    • Urgent Matters
    • View From The Top
    • Legal Matters
  • Resources
    • Back
    • Webinars
    • White Papers
    • Reprints & Reuse
    • UC eZines
    • Sponsored content
  • IWCE
    • Back
    • Conference
    • Why Attend
    • Exhibitor Listing
    • Floor Plan
    • Exhibiting Information
    • Join the Event Mailing List
  • About Us
    • Back
    • About Us
    • Contact Us
    • Advertise
    • Terms of Service
    • Privacy Statement
    • Cookies Policy
  • Related Sites
    • Back
    • American City & County
    • IWCE
    • Light Reading
    • IOT World Today
    • TU-Auto
  • newsletter
  • In the field
    • Back
    • Internet of Things
    • Broadband Push-to-X
    • Project 25
    • Public-Safety Broadband/FirstNet
    • Virtual/Augmented Reality
    • Land Mobile Radio
    • Long Term Evolution (LTE)
    • Applications
    • Drones/Robots
    • IoT/Smart X
    • Software
    • Subscriber Devices
    • Video
  • Call Center/Command
    • Back
    • Artificial Intelligence
    • NG911
    • Alerting Systems
    • Analytics
    • Dispatch/Call-taking
    • Incident Command/Situational Awareness
    • Tracking, Monitoring & Control
  • Network Tech
    • Back
    • Cybersecurity
    • Interoperability
    • LMR 100
    • LMR 200
    • Backhaul
    • Deployables
    • Power
    • Tower & Site
    • Wireless Networks
    • Coverage/Interference
    • Security
    • System Design
    • System Installation
    • System Operation
    • Test & Measurement
  • Operations
    • Back
    • Critical Infrastructure
    • Enterprise
    • Federal Government/Military
    • Public Safety
    • State & Local Government
    • Training
  • Regulations
    • Back
    • Narrowbanding
    • T-Band
    • Rebanding
    • TV White Spaces
    • None
    • Funding
    • Policy
    • Regional Coordination
    • Standards
  • Organizations
    • Back
    • AASHTO
    • APCO
    • DHS
    • DMR Association
    • ETA
    • EWA
    • FCC
    • IWCE
    • NASEMSO
    • NATE
    • NXDN Forum
    • NENA
    • NIST/PSCR
    • NPSTC
    • NTIA/FirstNet
    • P25 TIG
    • TETRA + CCA
    • UTC
acc.com

content


FCC’s Kevin Martin takes the helm

FCC’s Kevin Martin takes the helm

Appointment could alter the landscape for broadband over power line
  • Written by Urgent Communications Administrator
  • 1st April 2005

President George W. Bush last month appointed Commissioner Kevin Martin to succeed fellow Republican Michael Powell as FCC chairman. In doing so he might have unwittingly put the brakes on still-developing broadband over power line technologies that have raised the angst and ire of amateur radio operators nationwide.

Amateur radio operators long have expressed concern that radiation leakage stemming from widespread deployment of BPL would interfere with their transmissions. The hams also are concerned that the utilities won’t act quickly enough to mitigate interference once complaints are brought to their attention, and that the commission has done little to address the situation.

Last month, the Amateur Radio Relay League filed a complaint with the FCC’s Enforcement Bureau and its Office of Engineering and Technology citing ongoing BPL interference in Irving, Texas, and said it would renew a similar complaint affecting its members in Briarcliff Manor, New York.

ARRL CEO David Sumner reminded Martin in a letter last month that the FCC has yet to order a single BPL operation to shut down, “despite the failure of BPL system operators to resolve interference.”

“The ARRL and the nation’s radio amateurs are anxious for a sign that we can expect this sorry situation to be corrected under your leadership,” Sumner said.

Powell, who ended his tenure as chairman on March 31, was an unabashed cheerleader for BPL, which he saw as the panacea for bringing high-speed data services to underserved areas, particularly rural areas, where infrastructure costs are so high that cable companies and wireline telephone companies can’t justify the deployments. His enthusiasm for BPL largely drove public utilities — ultra-conservative organizations by nature — to take the leap, according to Nancy Kaplan, vice president of Adventis, a consultancy headquartered in Boston.

“Powell was remarkably supportive [of BPL],” Kaplan said. “Having that support made all the difference in terms of the utilities being willing to go after this. … They got burned by telecom in the past, so feeling that they really had somebody who was going to support them from a regulatory standpoint and make it easy for them, actually has made BPL move more quickly than it might have otherwise.”

When the FCC approved rules in October 2004 that cleared the way for widespread deployment of the technology — which uses the nation’s power grid to deliver high-speed voice and data services — Powell said those concerns weren’t enough to justify putting the breaks on BPL and that the commission’s rules provided adequate protection for the hams.

“The potential for the American economy is too great — is too potentially groundbreaking — to sit idly by and allow any claim or any possible speculative fear to keep us from trying to drive this technology and drive America into the broadband future,” Powell said at the time.

Martin was less dismissive of those concerns. At the time of the order, Martin issued a statement that not only recognized amateur radio’s concerns regarding BPL, but also pledged to do something about them. “I am confident that the commission will continue to monitor these concerns and will take steps, where needed, to address interference problems going forward,” Martin said.

Kaplan predicted that Martin will support BPL, but won’t share Powell’s zeal. Without such a champion going forward, BPL could fall well short of Powell’s vision, some would say dream, for the nascent technology.

“BPL could end up being a small alternative that is used for a few things,” Kaplan said. “It has some value for the utilities themselves for their internal operations. I think it will move in that direction rather than becoming a large consumer option.”

Tags: Regulation content Policy

Most Recent


  • Black Hat 2022: Adapting to the growing cyberthreat landscape
    The nation’s first cybersecurity chief is warning that the growing threat landscape will get worse as society and businesses become more digitized. At the Black Hat USA 2022 conference, Chris Krebs, the first director of the U.S. Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, said he spent the last 18 months gathering information. He spoke to people […]
  • Diffusing the connected car's ticking data-privacy timebomb
    Connected and autonomous vehicles (CAVs) collate a significant amount of data to ensure vehicle safety, requiring an always-on internet connection and hundreds of sensors. An entire industry has been developed around monitoring, logging, analyzing and monetizing it. Yet, the danger is, particularly with increasing cyber-attacks, that this data could end up being leaked and stolen. […]
  • What the 6 GHz band might mean to fixed-wireless access
    Fixed-wireless access (FWA) technology is gaining significant interest in the US market, as evidenced by T-Mobile and Verizon collectively adding 816,000 new FWA customers during the second quarter of this year, while Charter Communications and Comcast collectively lost around 21,000 broadband customers. Leichtman Research Group reported that, over the past year, the US broadband industry added a total […]
  • FCC’s Kevin Martin takes the helm
    Newscan: D.C. appeals court upholds FCC decision to share 5.9 GHz V2V spectrum with Wi-Fi
    Web Roundup Items from other news organizations D.C. appeals court upholds FCC decision to share 5.9 GHz V2V spectrum with Wi-Fi Auto industry lost its spectrum fight with FCC because V2V was always a fantasy FCC, FEMA raise alarm bells about vulnerabilities in Emergency Alert System Gigi Sohn’s backers dismiss call for different FCC nominee […]

Leave a comment Cancel reply

To leave a comment login with your Urgent Comms account:

Log in with your Urgent Comms account

Or alternatively provide your name, email address below:

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Related Content

  • New Orleans-area 911 center inks multiyear APEX deal with Carbyne to replace call-handling system
  • FCC’s Kevin Martin takes the helm
    Newscan: Feds recover millions from pipeline ransom hackers, hint at U.S. Internet tactic
  • Cyber is the new Cold War, and AI is the arms race
  • Private wireless networks in the US start going public

Commentary


LTE and liability: Why the fire service must move forward with digital incident command

  • 2
6th May 2022

Partnership and collaboration must be the foundation for emergency communications

18th April 2022

FirstNet success means no hypothetical ‘shots’ need to be fired, Swenson says

22nd February 2022
view all

Events


UC Ezines


IWCE 2019 Wrap Up

13th May 2019
view all

Twitter


UrgentComm

Intelsat, OneWeb team on in-flight connectivity dlvr.it/SWgYb2

15th August 2022
UrgentComm

Black Hat 2022: Adapting to the growing cyberthreat landscape dlvr.it/SWgF3Y

15th August 2022
UrgentComm

Diffusing the connected car’s ticking data-privacy timebomb dlvr.it/SWdCw2

14th August 2022
UrgentComm

Patch madness: Vendor bug advisories are broken, so broken dlvr.it/SWcvFR

14th August 2022
UrgentComm

What the 6 GHz band might mean to fixed-wireless access dlvr.it/SWctfk

14th August 2022
UrgentComm

FirstNet PTT technical progress highlighted by AT&T at APCO 2022 dlvr.it/SWZtNJ

13th August 2022
UrgentComm

Newscan: D.C. appeals court upholds FCC decision to share 5.9 GHz V2V spectrum with Wi-Fi dlvr.it/SWZQpx

13th August 2022
UrgentComm

Cisco confirms data breach, hacked files leaked dlvr.it/SWV8l9

12th August 2022

Newsletter

Sign up for UrgentComm’s newsletters to receive regular news and information updates about Communications and Technology.

Expert Commentary

Learn from experts about the latest technology in automation, machine-learning, big data and cybersecurity.

Business Media

Find the latest videos and media from the market leaders.

Media Kit and Advertising

Want to reach our digital and print audiences? Learn more here.

DISCOVER MORE FROM INFORMA TECH

  • American City & County
  • IWCE
  • Light Reading
  • IOT World Today
  • Mission Critical Technologies
  • TU-Auto

WORKING WITH US

  • About Us
  • Contact Us
  • Events
  • Careers

FOLLOW Urgent Comms ON SOCIAL

  • Privacy
  • CCPA: “Do Not Sell My Data”
  • Cookies Policy
  • Terms
Copyright © 2022 Informa PLC. Informa PLC is registered in England and Wales with company number 8860726 whose registered and Head office is 5 Howick Place, London, SW1P 1WG.
This website uses cookies, including third party ones, to allow for analysis of how people use our website in order to improve your experience and our services. By continuing to use our website, you agree to the use of such cookies. Click here for more information on our Cookie Policy and Privacy Policy.
X