FCC To Consider Petitions To Allow Common Carrier Service Over POSF Channels Below 2 Mhz
(DA 99-1036)

FCC To Consider Petitions To Allow Common Carrier Service Over POSF Channels Below 2 Mhz
(DA 99-1036)

The FCC is seeking comments on petitions filed by three private operational fixed point-to-point microwave service (POFS) licensees, including Nextel Communications, who seek to use their spectrum for common carrier applications.

The FCC is accepting input from the public on this issue through July 16.

This proposal should be of interest to our numerous clients that use private microwave radio for their internal business communications.

On the one hand, this proposal may expand the possible uses for your radios by allowing you to sell excess capacity to other businesses. On the other hand, the proposal may open the door to a flood of similar requests by commercial service providers, quickly depleting any available private microwave spectrum left in populated areas.

In a 1996 report and order (WT Docket No. 94-148), the FCC established procedures to allow POFS licensees with assignments above 2 GHz to elect common carrier status. In the same order, it maintained an existing ban on common carrier use of POFS licenses below 2 GHz.

Nextel seeks to use four POFS assignments in the state of Nevada to backhaul traffic on its specialized mobile radio networks. It claims that its request is for changes in regulatory classification alone. It does not plan to change the current path of existing point-to-point transmissions on its POFS facilities, therefore, Nextel says, it should be allowed to retain its "primary" status on those frequencies.

The status of the other two petitions listed in the FCC’s public notice is somewhat unclear. They were filed in February and August of 1997, and the companies that filed the petitions have since transferred or begun the process of transferring their POFS licenses.

One of the petitions, by AP&T Wireless Inc., a provider of electric power and telecommunications service, states that it wishes to continue using four POFS stations in Alaska to support communications among its work crews in the region. At the same time, it wishes to offer access to the network to various businesses operating in the area on a case-by-case basis. AP&T claims that it would be more efficient to use the existing POFS infrastructure for this purpose rather than building a new parallel wireless network.. The actual holder of the licenses in question, however, is Citizens Unlimited Inc., which applied for transfer of its POFS licenses to AP&T concurrent with the petition for common carrier status.

Westinghouse Communications Services Inc. filed a 1997 petition for common carrier status for 34 POFS licenses in Puerto Rico. Since then, however, Westinghouse and CBS have merged to form CBS Communications Services Inc. Soon after that merger, CBS transferred its Puerto Rico POFS licenses to RSL COM USA Inc.

If you have any questions about this petition or would like to participate in the comment rounds, please contact John Prendergast at (202) 828-5540.