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15
Apr

Lawmakers Urge FCC to Solve LightSquared Issue

Four lawmakers have urged Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Chairman Julius Genachowski to find a solution that will allow LightSquared to launch its planned 4G network.

In a letter obtained by The Hill, Reps. Brian Bilbray (R-Calif.), Joe Pitts (R-Pa.), Jim Moran (D-Va.) and Gerry Connolly (D-Va.) said the FCC should “examine all potential paths forward before closing the door on what could be an opportunity to increase competition and access in the nation’s wireless providers.”

The lawmakers said that if the FCC walks away from LightSquared it would “ignore a decade of regulatory rules and orders on which this business relied in building their model. We hope that the FCC will examine all possibilities to allow this broadband competitor to move forward, while ensuring a more robust GPS system for the American consumer.”

LightSquared argues it is the GPS industry’s responsibility to build receivers that only listen to their own designated frequencies, but GPS companies claim LightSquared is trying to build a cell phone network relying on frequencies that should only be used by satellites which transmit much fainter signals.
source: Rotornews