Wireless group seeks common ground among operators

The Broadband Wireless Alliance wants to bring order from chaos by establishing committees that create working agreements between the fixed broadband wireless industry’s multiple independent operators.

Citing FCC recommendations, the BWA created 17 broadband wireless working committees to establish coordination among hundreds of vendors, wireless operators and end users--especially broadband wireless ISPs--on how to equitably manage unlicensed broadband spectrum.

“Right now, the industry is very disorganized, and there are a lot of small people trying to do things by themselves. We’re trying to create an umbrella that brings all these people together under one roof and gets them all going in the same direction,” said Robert Hoskins, the BWA’s managing director.

The FCC, Hoskins said, made it clear to wireless operators at the recent Wireless Internet Service Provider conference in Washington, that the industry must first police its own unlicensed spectrum interference issues before the government steps in. While laws prohibit operators using the same spectrum in the same locations, there’s no viable way to determine which operator was in the space first and has first rights to that spectrum, Hoskins said.

“We’re going to change that. When they file a complaint with the FCC, it can come to this organization and we can say, ‘This guy’s been in business for a long time, and this guy is a new guy definitely not playing by the rules.’ The FCC can go in and shut him down,” he said.

While the BWA has a database of 800 wireless ISPs, 300 vendors and 100 systems integrators, none have yet agreed to abide by the committees, Hoskins said.

“We’re going to set this up and pull these guys together. Everyone knows we need it,” he said.

Industry solidarity will also help with getting, keeping and sharing spectrum by providing a level of expertise many small operators don’t currently have in dealing with government agencies, Hoskins said.

“The FCC has said, ‘If you guys can just get together and provide a unified front and show us that you’re already using this public spectrum to provide what no one else can--high-speed broadband Internet access to rural communities or other folks that can’t get it--we will seriously think about giving you more frequency,’” Hoskins said.

The FCC, he added, is “tasked with providing broadband to as many people as possible by whatever means possible.” Broadband fixed wireless--in licensed and unlicensed bands--answers that need.

“The problem is when you have these people trying to build out systems, if you don’t have some type of organization that tries to help out and serve as a regulator, you’re going to have the government step in. No one wants that,” he concluded.

The Wireless Communications Association International also has been working on these issues.