Editor’s Note: This letter was sent to several U.S. Congressmen by the owners of Americell Communications.
To the Editor:
Americell Communications is a medium- to small-sized specialized mobile radio company operating in the 800 MHz frequency spectrum. We started our business on May 25, 1991, with a single five-channel Federal Communications Commission license, a dream to build a great communications system and $15,000. We are a husband and wife team with a strong background in the communications industry. We dedicated our lives to this company, and still believe in the American dream.
Within the first two years of operation, our company expanded to include two more sites and approximately 2,000 units. We always have strived to stay on the leading edge of technology. For example, all of our sites are connected via digital microwave. We also provide voice mail to our telco users. In addition, they enjoy the convenience of follow-me roaming through the Americell system and we network with other companies to provide wide-area coverage for telephone and dispatch. This wide area encompasses the entire east side of Washington state, the northwest side of Washington state, Idaho, Oregon and Montana.
The types of customers that are served by our company in this rural part of Washington state include police departments, fire departments, ambulances, schools, telephone companies, utility companies, mining, logging, farmers and farm suppliers.
As our company continued to grow, and having met the FCC requirements, we filed for more licenses. We followed the FCC rules and applied for what we needed. Then the freeze went into effect. Our growth, planned expansions and our hope for the future of our company came to a screeching halt.
We believed that when the freeze went into effect that the government and the FCC were trying to determine the legitimate companies (such as ourselves) from the speculators, and what the Nextels really needed for their so-called experimental licenses. Apparently, this was not the case considering two years later we are looking at having to relocate, and possibly will lose our business all together because most of us will not have the capital or financial backing to get into the bidding process.
It has been said that competition is good for business; but only when the playing field is even. If I have a set of rules to follow, and my competition has the same set of rules, let the best company win. But when a large corporation has the ability to change the rules behind everyone’s back, take all the spectrum so that the small company can’t expand, then have the FCC auction what little spectrum is left, knowing that only they can afford to purchase it, this is going to create a monopoly. This will effectively take away the public’s freedom of choice.
Perhaps our industry as a whole has been pretty naive, believing that we could operate our business according to the rules and within the law set before us. And that as long as we were honest, hard working people, all would be well and prosper. Imagine the eye-opening experience we all suffered when big money and ex-FCC employees discovered our industry. (I was told by an FCC employee that we were victims of our own success). We thought we were being represented by the American Mobile Telecommunications Association and the Personal Communications Industry Association (having paid our dues) only to discover that Nextel Communications Inc. and Motorola Inc. had paid more money to them than we had. So our next line of defense was to form our own organization, SMR WON, and hire attorneys to help fight our cause.
Our last resource is our U.S. Senate and Congress. I hope you hear us and take a stand in our favor. We as Americans have the right to continue to grow and prosper in our chosen profession and business. We will continue to provide a wide-area dispatch system with telephone interconnect that is cost effective and reliable, use our spectrum to its maximum efficiency and keep up-to-date on the latest technology as it becomes available.
We do not only represent a few scattered communications companies, (there are many independent SMR operators in this country) we represent all of our customers that choose to have a reliable, cost-effective communications system. They don’t need or want to pay for service in California or New York. They want a local wide-area system. Nextel said they are the only ones that can provide this. This is a simple lie. We and others like us have had wide-area systems in place for more than five years and it does not cost a fortune. My dispatch rate for wide-area service is 15 cents per minute compared with their 45 cents per minute. My telephone rates are 40 cents per minute compared with their 65 cents per minute. My rates have not increased since the conception of our business. Whereas their rates increase to whatever they feel the market can bear. Who has the best interest of the public at heart?
Moving us and auctioning the spectrum will be detrimental not only to us but also to our customers.
We wish to attend any and all meetings or hearings that the government and FCC hold concerning this issue. It has never been more important than now.
Cheryl Benjamin
Eric Benjamin
Americell Communications
