WASHINGTON-The 800 MHz Transition Administrator warned that vendors supplying equipment for companies moving off the 800 MHz band need to proactively prepare for their clients’ needs as the reconfiguration process goes forward.
Companies like Motorola Inc., Kenwood and M/A Com supply products to the private wireless and public safety groups moving off the band.
“The TA is already aware of several instances in which a lack of vendor planning resources has led to delay,” said the TA in its quarterly status report on the rebanding. Vendors also were cautioned to refrain from using “one-size-fits-all” planning services. “Unnecessary activities or costs only slow negotiations and TA reviews. In fact, most disputes between parties during negotiations are not over incumbent costs but rather vendor costs,” said the TA.
The Transition Administrator is an outside team selected by the Federal Communications Commission to manage the 800 MHz rebanding. The FCC in 2004 said it wanted to reconfigure the 800 MHz band. Sprint Nextel Corp. is paying to retune public-safety and private-wireless licensees in the band.
The 800 MHz rebanding is taking place in generally two stages: first move the licensees out of channels 1-120 and then move the National Public-Safety Planning Advisory Committee licensees in.
“Progress in the channels 1-120 clearing stage of the program is in line with expectations, and while the first quarter of 2006 has seen improvements in public-safety planning and preparations, these improvements remain insufficient. The TA is therefore working closely with public-safety leadership and Sprint Nextel to develop solutions that will make it easier for public-safety licensees to complete the process,” said the TA.
The Transition Administrator established a rolling rebanding negotiating process that started last September. The TA geographically split the country into waves. For example, Wave 1 includes licensees in Chicago, the northeastern United States, Northern California, Nevada, Oregon, Utah and Colorado.
Wave 2 Stage 1 negotiations proceeded faster than their counterparts in Wave 1. To date, 35 percent of Wave 2 licensee agreements have been referred to the alternative dispute resolution process-meaning nothing was resolved in mandatory negotiations-compared to 47 percent in Wave 1 Stage 1, said the TA.
In other 800 MHz rebanding activities, the FCC late last month agreed with the Transition Administrator and extended the mandatory negotiation period with NPSPAC Wave 1 licensees to Oct. 31. NPSPAC licensees need to make sure public-safety communications are not compromised during the rebanding process and so may require more time, the agency said.
The FCC reiterated its belief that all of the parties must do their best to complete the rebanding by June 27, 2008.
