AirCell, Boeing Reach Agreement on ATG Plan
AirCell and Boeing told the FCC they had adopted a joint approach on air-to-ground (ATG) communications, we learned Thurs. The companies revealed their agreement in a closed-door presentation late Wed. to staff of the Wireless Bureau and Office of Engineering & Technology. The FCC had suggested strongly that the companies -- which favor allowing carriers to share ATG spectrum -- work together. With the proposal, AirCell and Boeing stand in direct conflict with Verizon’s AirFone, which favors the awarding of 2 exclusive licenses at most.
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AirCell said in a presentation the approach promotes “innovation, spectrum efficiency and competition” sought by the FCC. AirCell also said its proposal would be “responsive to airline desires for broadband and competition” and would provide “full broadband capability on a flexible, shared basis.”
AirFone insists that AirCell’s sharing approach wouldn’t work because it would cause insurmountable interference. AirFone had filed a paper Tues. at the FCC disputing an early paper by AirCell on “deck to deck” broadband service from takeoff to landing. “These sharing schemes create several interference problems, including base-to-base interference between cross-duplexed systems operating in the airport environment, where base stations will be relatively close together,” AirFone said.
All 3 companies as well as Space Data, which has offered an alternate licensing scheme, appeared at the FCC for the debate before staff. “Everyone got their fair share of questions,” said one source. “It wasn’t necessarily indicative of where they're going or what the timing is or any of the questions that we had.”
The Wireless Bureau sent a proposed ATG order to Chmn. Powell’s office Sept. 16, for a vote at Thurs. meetings, but it was pulled a week later. Powell decided the order “wasn’t ready for prime time,” a source said. Powell hopes for a vote at the Nov. meeting.