Happy 25th, IWCE!

This year marked the 25th anniversary of the International Wireless Communications Expo, held in Las Vegas in March. Between the 350+ booths, special events, conference sessions and prize giveaways, visitors to IWCE were kept busy.

’70s party, car giveaway mark celebration

With more than 350 exhibitors of land-mobile related equipment and services, the International Wireless Communications Expo has come a long way since 1977, when it started out as the National Business Radio Dealer’s Conference. More than 7,500 people attended the show this year, an increase over last year.

Several special events marked the occasion of IWCE’s 25th anniversary. Exhibitors attended a 25^th anniversary ‘70s party Tuesday night before the show, where a slide show presented industry events from the past 25 years. And thanks to IWCE’s “premier partners,” one fortunate attendee won a 2000 Volkswagen Beetle on the last day of the show. (The partners included ComSpace, Kenwood Communications, Motorola, Futurecom and Vertex Standard.)

Conference sessions included three tracks: the business and technology track, the regulatory track and the public safety track. Subjects covered the status of channels 60-69 and how to survive and win the auction process. The public safety track expanded to include the latest information on interoperability, TETRA and 700MHz.

Public safety proved to be a priority at IWCE this year (see “Public Safety: ‘10-2’,” page 14). The keynote speaker was the chair of the Public Safety National Coordination Committee, Kathleen Wallman. Exhibitors included public safety associations such as the Public Safety Wireless Network Program and the Association of Public-Safety Communications Officials-International.

IWCE 2002 will be held April 24-26 at the Las Vegas Convention Center. (www.iwceconexpo.com.)

Seventy-seven companies join IWCE event

Some of the companies represented on the exhibit floor of IWCE 2001 have long been a part of the show’s history. These exhibitors have witnessed an evolution of technology and a parade of new faces visiting their booths during “the” radio show.

This year, a significant number of “first-time” exhibitors joined the hustle and bustle of the expo — almost 80, to be more specific. The addition of these exhibitors was cause enough to celebrate IWCE’s 25^th birthday. You can review a list of these companies by accessing the “New Exhibitor” menu item from the home page of IWCE Live! The link is on the MRT site (www.mrtmag.com).

An important subset of this roster, however, is the international list of new exhibitors. Seven companies from outside the United States are represented in this year’s exhibitor lineup. They are: Airtech Information & Communication Company, South Korea; Cape Communications UK Ltd., UK; Multitone Electronics, UK; No Wave, Sweden; Commtech Wireless Pty, Ltd., Australia; SCUD Fujian Electric Co. Ltd., China; Union China Limited, Hong Kong.
— RI

RCA breakfast draws overflow crowd

The Radio Club of America (RCA) annual breakfast was attended by more than 140 RCA members and guests. Event sponsors included Fryer’s Site Guide & Tower Source, RadioMate, Schwaninger & Associates and Small Business in Telecommunications.

Bob McGowan, chair of the American Mobile Telecommunication Association and president of FleetTalk Partners spoke to attendees about the “death of dispatch.” McGowan noted that cellular has raised the expectations of users and is challenging two-way radio with such systems as Nextel’s direct-connect service.

In spite of the challenge being offered by cellular, McGowan said that the demand for dispatch services will increase. He noted that transportation, real-estate, oil and gas, and government markets are prime candidates for dispatch growth.

However, to become attractive to these markets McGowan presented a “wish list” that would support growth. He said the government must provide enough spectrum to make the market attractive to service suppliers and OEMs. His list also included: a high-quality, market-priced radio; a first-class dealers organization; availability of wide-area systems; a cost-effective path to digital technology; reliable customer service support and client retention and a federal government that understands how dispatch services significantly contribute to the nation’s economy.
— RL

SBT ‘Jam Session’ highlights registration technology

Regulations and technical advances that may challenge and benefit small telecom businesses were explored during the annual Small Business in Telecommunications pre-IWCE ‘Jam Session’ at the Alexis Park Hotel on March 27.

The five-hour conference program was interleaved with technical and informational presentations by manufacturers and business services sponsoring the event.

Presentations included an overview of potential conflicts between local-exchange carriers and paging providers over which will bear the costs and technical responsibilities for digital trunk SS7 (signaling system 7) implementation. Vic Jackson, of Vic Jackson Interconnection Services, outlined the LECs’ responsibilities and methods paging providers can use to convert SS7 to MF signaling. Jackson said this technology interface challenge will affect interconnected SMR carriers in ways similar to those experienced by cellular and PCS providers.

Francisco Montero, former director of the FCC’s Office of Communications Business Opportunities (now a partner in the Washington law firm Shaw Pittman), described FCC successes and shortcomings in accommodating small telecom business interests in the 1990s. Montero forecasted that the OCBO, created under then-Chairman Reed Hundt, may have its activities distributed among other bureaus under current FCC Chairman Michael Powell.

Brian Seedle, director for Fylde Microsystems Ltd., previewed his Wednesday IWCE presentation on the future of wireless. Seedle explored similarities and differences between U.S. and European technical standards and business models. Matching range and coverage to those models is a key issue, Seedle said: “If you don’t get the range right, your business case falls to pieces.” Seedle also urged small commercial service providers to investigate new technologies personally, without relying exclusively on information from the industry press, analysts or standards committees.

SBT General Counsel Robert H. Schwaninger Jr., of Schwaninger & Associates, updated attendees on a still-active U.S. Court of Appeals challenge to FCC 800MHz auction procedures. He also discussed efforts to keep customer lists confidential during relocation negotiations with auction winners. How guardband managers may distribute spectrum, dubious tower consolidation activities and spectrum caps were also discussed.

The general counsel’s associate, attorney Delaney DiStefano, discussed rules and procedures for the upcoming paging auction on June 26, when more than 15,000 upperband and lowerband licenses will be offered.

Sponsor presentations included techniques supporting equipment distribution and order accuracy by Primus Electronics; optimization of automatic vehicle location data by King Communications; and new approaches for small-business financing by Arbitronix Financial Services, Lauderhill, FL.

Comspace outlined its progress in equipment type-acceptance and Digital-Channel, Multicarrier-Architecture base stations and mobiles. DX Radio Systems previewed its announcement of an MPT-1327 overlay with LTR for UHF fleet dispatch over wide-area multisite systems.

SBT Chairman Lonnie Danchik conducted a written poll of conference attendees asking what they perceive as the most serious challenges to building future business. The top response: FCC rules and regulations.
— DK