Ligado, which previously operated under the LightSquared name, scored a deal with GPS device maker Topcon in bid to gain access to L-Band spectrum.
Ligado Networks efforts to free up its midband spectrum resources continues to roll forward, with the firm recently striking its fifth agreement with a global navigation satellite system equipment provider.
Ligado, which operated previously as LightSquared, said it reached a cooperation agreement with Topcon Positioning Systems to resolve interference concerns over Ligado’s plans to use L-Band spectrum for ground-based wireless services. Ligado currently has access to 40 megahertz of spectrum in the 1.6 GHz band adjacent to some high-precision GPS equipment, which has been at the center of a long-standing concern over potential interference issues.
The agreement calls for coordinated testing on operating parameters and deployment plans should Ligado get the go ahead on its terrestrial network plans. As part of the agreement, Topcon also sent a letter to the Federal Communications Commission throwing its support behind Ligado’s proposal to modify its spectrum licenses to enable its ground-based network plans.
“Over the past many months, we’ve worked closely with Ligado to conduct a thorough analysis,” explained Ivan Di Federico, chief strategy officer at Topcon. “We’ve agreed that the parties will cooperate in the future if their proposal impacts Topcon’s devices in any way. Our agreement is a positive step forward for both companies and we look forward to coordinating with Ligado over the coming years as it deploys a ground network.”
Ligado has reached similar agreements with a handful of GPS device manufacturers, including Deere & Co., Garmin International, Trimble Navigation and NovAtel.
Ligado earlier this year noted in an FCC filing it was taking a “number of steps to ensure satellites using other midband spectrum can still successfully send signals to smartphones, GPS devices and specialized industrial equipment that rely on that data,” and the firm hired an engineering team to help solve interference issues.
“We also hired a world-class engineering firm, Roberson and Associates, to study how GPS can be protected,” said Ligado President and CEO Doug Smith. “The great news is that as a result of the power reductions there is no evidence that GPS users or manufacturers will be harmed by Ligado’s proposed operations. Significantly, cellular devices and consumer devices representing the vast majority of the GPS market are not adversely impacted by our planned deployment.”
Steps in the proposal are said to include using 10 megahertz of spectrum nearest to GPS transmission strictly for satellite communications; a promise to the Federal Aviation Administration to maintain transmission power at levels that would not interfere with airline communications; support for an auction of spectrum adjacent to the upper band controlled by Ligado, though require the winning bidder to fund “the creation of and transition to a high-speed internet access and cloud-based distribution of weather data.”
Ligado’s current operations are based on satellite connectivity, with the firm touting its future as integrating a terrestrial network in support of “5G” and the “internet of things.”
LightSquared late last year emerged from bankruptcy protection precipitated by the FCC’s refusal to grant the company access to its spectrum licenses due to interference concerns with some GPS equipment radiating outside of GPS channels. LightSquared was attempting to use the spectrum as part of a “4G” network deployment plan with Sprint that would have seen it resell access to third parties.
Ligado earlier this year added former Sprint Nextel executive Tim Donahue to its power-packed board of directors. Donahue left Sprint Nextel in 2006, serving as chairman of the company following Sprint’s $35 billion acquisition of Nextel Communications in 2005. Donahue had previously served as president and CEO of Nextel, which prior to its acquisition was the nation’s No. 6 carrier in terms of customer base.
Ligado’s board also includes former Verizon Communications executive Ivan Seidenberg and former FCC Chairman Reed Hundt.
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