COLUMBIA, Md.-The engineers at the Federal Communications Commission have completed their examination of various proposals to solve the interference problem experienced by public-safety agencies in the 800 MHz band. And the FCC is still poised to make a decision by the end of the year, said Edmond Thomas, chief of the FCC’s Office of Engineering and Technology.
Thomas would not rule out the consensus plan supported by Nextel Communications Inc., private wireless entities and some in public safety. But he continued to lean toward various technical solutions to the problem. He said the engineers have evaluated the various solutions presented and understand the pros and cons of each.
While the basic examinations have been completed, Thomas expects continued evaluations as policy choices are made regarding the best way to solve the interference problem.
He made his statements at a press conference held Thursday morning at the FCC’s Engineering Lab. As part of the press conference, reporters were given a rare tour of the lab, which was recently modernized after Michael Powell became chairman of the FCC. Part of the tour involved showing how $300,000 worth of equipment can make simulations of the various interference scenarios using 11 different public-safety radios.
Nextel supports a plan that would split the 800 MHz band into two parts-one for cellularized systems and one for non-cellularized systems. The most controversial aspect of the plan is that Nextel would receive 10 megahertz of spectrum in the 1.9 GHz band (1910-1915-1995 MHz).
The alternative proposal supported by The Cellular Telecommunications & Internet Association and individual wireless carriers relies on best practices to solve interference problems where they occur.
Motorola Inc. also has devised a technical solution.
