Commerce Secy. Donald Evans. after meeting with Romanian Prime Minister Adrian Nastase this week, said he supported recently forged partnership of Qualcomm and Romanian govt. to standardize CDMA technology in that country. “This agreement creates a new market for U.S.-developed CDMA wireless technology, and will benefit the numerous American companies which will supply equipment to build this network,” Evans said. “The success of CDMA technology speaks for itself.” Romanian wireless carrier Telemobil plans to start CDMA network in 18 cities and along major highways later this year. Lucent is supplying CDMA gear for first part of rollout. Evans said Commerce Dept. and Romanian govt. signed statement of intent “to promote increased commercial linkages in the field of mobile communications.”
It may be “some time” after scheduled 2006 DTV transition date before analog broadcasters vacate spectrum at 700 MHz for public safety users in certain markets, FCC Chmn. Powell told House Commerce Committee Chmn. Tauzin (R-La.) and Rep. Harman (D-Cal.) in letter, which was sent Oct. 12 but only now made public. Cal. could be one area where public safety wireless users would be most affected by delayed transition because state had 5 licenses on TV Chs. 63, 64, 68 and 69, he said in response to questions raised by Tauzin in earlier letter. “Notably, the Los Angeles area has five digital allotments for Channels 60-69, which means the spectrum in that city will definitely be encumbered until a digital allotment is available further down in the ‘core’ toward the end of the transition,” Powell said in letters to Tauzin and Harman which inquired about range of public safety spectrum issues in wake of Sept. 11 attacks. In detailed answers to queries, Powell described Commission efforts to examine other spectrum for public safety operations, including 138-144 MHz and 4.9 GHz. “I want to assure you that we will continue our efforts to encourage interoperability, particularly on a nationwide level, remove regulatory barriers that hamper realization of interoperability and take other measures to improve and ensure effective public safety communications,” he wrote.
There’s 50-50 chance DirecTV-EchoStar merger will be blocked by antitrust regulators, said former Justice Dept. Antitrust Div. Chief Don Baker. Baker, who worked as staffer 1966-1975, was appointed antitrust chief by President Ford in 1976, now is partner in Baker & Miller antitrust law firm. “Clearly there are a couple of different issues,” Baker told us. He and other attorneys said EchoStar faced uphill regulatory battle, but they said hiring of antitrust lawyer David Boies should help. Former DoJ telecom legal expert Don Russell now is top EchoStar lawyer.
GM was expected to make decision on sale of Hughes Electronics over weekend as speculation mounted that it would select EchoStar over News Corp. Board had meeting scheduled for Sat. in N.Y. However, industry sources said top GM management still was divided on which offer was best for stockholders and company. Deal with EchoStar was contingent on EchoStar’s completing transaction for $5.5 billion line of credit from UBS Warburg and Deutsche Bank.
Three FCC commissioners agreed Fri. that Commission probably should take some action to encourage deployment of broadband services. Addressing broadband summit sponsored by NARUC and National Exchange Carrier Assn. (NECA), Comrs. Copps, Abernathy and Martin all said FCC had role in eliminating regulations that acted as disincentives to broadband build-out. Beyond that, Copps, lone Democrat, seemed to take more proactive role as he questioned what was so wrong about govt. involvement in such major business development. Martin, on other hand, pushed elimination of sharing rules that he said discouraged carriers from expanding their own facilities. Abernathy saw possible role in encouraging timely rural deployment. Commissioners were among numerous industry and govt. representatives, including Bruce Mehlman, asst. Commerce secy. for technology policy, who offered views about state of broadband and wisdom of govt. involvement in stimulating its rollout. Mehlman outlined for National Summit on Broadband Deployment “critical questions” that faced Administration in that area as well as regulatory issues confronting network build-outs at state and local levels.
GM was expected to make its decision on the sale of Hughes Electronics over the weekend as speculation mounted that the company would select EchoStar over News Corp. The board had a meeting scheduled for Sat. in N.Y. However, industry sources said top GM management still was divided on which offer was best for its stockholders and the company. The deal with EchoStar was contingent on EchoStar’s completing a transaction for $5.5 billion line of credit from UBS Warburg and Deutsche Bank.
News media have protested contract between Space Imaging and National Imagery & Mapping Agency (NIMA) that excludes them from receiving satellite images of Afghanistan taken by Ikonos, most powerful commercial imaging satellite. In Oct. 18 letter to Secy. of Defense Donald Rumsfeld, Reporters Sans Frontieres (Reporters without borders [RSF]) said contract was “a way of disguised censorship aimed at preventing the media from doing their monitoring job.” RTNDA was drafting its own letter to DoD, spokeswoman said: “We're disappointed that the government would use taxpayers dollars to purchase images that have material of interest to the public, in order to keep it away from them… These images could certainly show what is happening with the movement of refugees and how the military campaign is affecting Afghanistan.”
Nominations confirmed by U.S. Senate: Philip Bond as Undersecy. of Commerce for Technology; John Marburger as dir.-Office of Science & Technology Policy… Roger Baker, ex-Commerce Dept. chief information officer, joins CACI International as vp-mgr., Network & Telecom Business Group… William Slakey, ex-SnapTrack, named CFO, WJ Communications.
Bush Administration weighed in for first time on wireless spectrum cap Wed., with NTIA Dir. Nancy Victory urging FCC Chmn. Powell to enact “full and immediate repeal.” In detailed letter, she told Powell that retention of limits wouldn’t preserve competition but would “more likely result in consumer harm.” Letter came as FCC was set to review continued need for wireless spectrum cap by year-end, with issue expected to be on agenda for Nov. 8 Commission meeting. Cap for commercial mobile radio service (CMRS) operators now is set at 45 MHz for most markets and 55 MHz in rural areas. Administration also urged Commission to do away with cellular cross-interest rules. “Given the current vigorous level of competition in the CMRS marketplace, the existence of other mechanisms to safeguard against anticompetitive activity and detrimental consolidation, and the potential consumer harms if the rules are left in place, prompt repeal is not only warranted but required,” Victory said.
State Dept. called decision to lift ban on export of satellite components to China “premature” as it denied recent Washington Post report that Bush Administration considered allowing the sale of spare parts for U.S.-made Black Hawk helicopters it purchased in 1984. There are other possible waiver cases pending, State official said: “We're not foreclosing those other possibilities… We're reviewing each case on its own merit, but there is a possibility of other waivers coming.” Bush will meet with Chinese President Jiang Zemin today (Oct. 19), but it was unknown whether specific sanctions might be discussed in continuing effort to ease tensions between countries so they could exchange intelligence in fight against terrorism. Members of satellite industry have faced stiff regulations on components aboard non-U.S. satellites since export licensing was moved to State Dept. from Commerce Dept. 2 years ago. Winning approval to launch from or export satellite components to China has been especially difficult. Predicting exactly what will happen when heads of 2 countries meet is “very hard,” Satellite Industry Assn. Pres. Richard Dalbello said: “There is a problem with the relationship between the U.S. and China and there are a number of key issues… If the overall climate with China gets better, more things become possible.” It isn’t “connect-the-dots” procedure in which U.S. waiving sanctions would lead directly to China’s sharing intelligence on Afghanistan or terrorists in that area, Dalbello said: “It’s not that mechanistic.” Source close to Loral, which had its export license suspended in 1998, said company “is not going to pin its hopes” on President’s 2-day meeting for battle it has fought for 2 years.