Adelstein Vexed at Sprint Nextel Lag on 800 MHz Rebanding
FCC Comr. Adelstein is concerned about the pace of 800 MHz rebanding, as Sprint Nextel makes deals with public safety and other licensees in the band. The FCC also seems to be making little progress on roaming, a major issue for rural wireless carriers, Adelstein said Wed after a speech to the Wireless Communications Assn.
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Adelstein echoed comments last week by Comr. McDowell on the slow pace of rebanding after the Commission’s landmark 2004 order (CD June 8 p4). In May, the FCC resolved some 800 MHz issues in a cleanup order, but has yet to address a Sprint request to extend the 18-month rebanding benchmark.
“I'm very concerned about the pace of the rebanding effort at 800 MHz,” Adelstein said: “I've heard a lot of complaints about it. We were given assurances that this would go smoothly, that the resources were there to make this happen effectively. I'm concerned if those predictions aren’t being met.” Adelstein said the FCC must remain vigilant. “We need to really stay on top of this,” he said: “This is a critical band for public safety and we can’t afford delay. We can’t afford mistakes. The public safety is really at stake here.”
Adelstein has seen few signs of progress on small carrier demands for an “automatic” roaming mandate, he said. Chmn. Martin said in March (CD March 28 p6) he was “sympathetic” to these complaints; the issue is alive at the FCC. Adelstein asked “internally” at the FCC for material on roaming reports filed by carriers containing proprietary information, but those requests haven’t been answered, he said.
“I'd like to see us move on the roaming issue,” Adelstein said: “As you see increasing consolidation there’s questions about what the wholesale market looks like, given that not every carrier can use every other carrier’s network. It’s an issue that deserves greater scrutiny by the FCC than we've given it so far.”
During comments to WCA, Adelstein reiterated complaints that the U.S. is falling behind much of the world based on the latest OECD rankings. “I'm concerned that we as a country do not have a common vision when it comes to a national broadband strategy,” he said: “Even though we've made significant strides, I'm still concerned that we are not keeping pace with our global competitors.” He added that “whatever you think about the rankings,” people elsewhere get “more megabits for less money.” For example, he said, in Japan broadband costs half as much and is 20 times faster: “This isn’t a public relations problem, it’s a productivity problem, and our citizens deserve better.”