Here’s a question: Is the wireless business being ill served by leaders unable to adjust thinking and strategy during a period of transition from a heavily regulated industry to one increasingly free of rules and dominated by consumers?
Here’s why I ask: antenna siting and health effects. The two issues threaten to take the vibrant wireless industry down. And for all the wrong reasons.
Wireless industry leaders, who believe any problem-big or small-can be fixed with a phone call or a visit to a congressman, are taking the industry down the wrong path.
They’ve chosen confrontation over conciliation.
In doing so, the industry has managed to alienate environmentalists, conservationists, organized labor, city councils, zoning boards, mayors, soccer moms and others. And moratoria as far as the eye can see.
Antenna siting moratoria and restrictive local ordinances discolor the wireless landscape. Competition that was supposed to blossom is wilting as wireless lobbyists team with federal regulators to hammer U.S. mayors. Salvos of petitions to pre-empt state and local regulation and taxation of wireless facilities light up the skies in Washington.
Wireless industry leaders voice outrageous contempt for standing-in-the-way-of progress locales. “We’ll show ’em who’s boss!” wireless lobbyists declare.
First they storm the FCC and convince Chairman Reed Hundt to write heavy-handed letters to a bunch of mayors.
Hey guys, what happened to neighborly diplomacy? Remember, all politics are local.
The wireless brigade then charges Capitol Hill. They get promises for hearings.
The old thinking is also at work with the cancer-link question. Wireless industry leaders are sitting around, ringing their hands over the lack of scientific studies done over the past four years. Did industry leaders think the issue would go away after a certain date? Manufacturers believe research will have to be ongoing, which reflects a more mature (and responsible) business thought process. Forget the science for a moment. Consider the public perception of how the industry-funded research program has been handled. To paraphrase former Sen. Howard Baker (R-Tenn.), it doesn’t make for good optics.
If the industry believes there is a legislative fix for its woes of the day, it should be prepared to wallow in the wireless pothole of the Information Superhighway.
