Muddy Waters

Arnold C. Pohs, chairman, president and CEO of CommNet Cellular, qualifies as an industry veteran thanks to his more than 15 years in wireless. This past year, he also was named chairman of the board for the Cellular Telecommunications Industry Association (CTIA). In that capacity, he served as a liaison between wireless carriers and the association, providing the links between issues in the field and needed actions on the Hill. Pohs spoke with Wireless Review about antenna moratoria, E-911, global strategies and third-generation plans. While the needed industry direction is crystal clear, outside influences are doing more to muddy the waters and prevent swift progress.

The conflict regarding siting moratoria continues unabated. In the past year, CTIA and the wireless industry have pointed fingers at the FCC for dragging its feet on this issue. But according to Pohs, not all the blame rests with the FCC. Although the FCC should initiate doctrine to force local communities and municipalities to allow antennas, Congress also needs to be accountable, he said.

"It's something in which Congress -- both the Senate and House -- has to intercede as well because these are all partial overflows from the lack of implementation of the Telecom Act of 1996," Pohs said. "We really need a nationwide wireless community that is totally interconnected. For that to happen, we have to get some relief."

And to get relief, Pohs said that carriers and the CTIA need to put even more effort into lobbying for changes.

"We have to be in touch with both the FCC and Congress," Pohs said.

If these efforts do not prove successful, the result could be detrimental to potential PCS subscribers.

"They (PCS providers) are most severely hit by this because they are just coming on-line," Pohs said. "PCS providers need many more sites. I think the consumer will be affected on the PCS side, if there's not relief along those lines."

Pohs said he doubted cellular carriers would feel the same pressure because they already have most of their coverage built out. However, they still need the relief in order to implement redundancy and to cover dead spots. According to Pohs, these dead spots must be filled to better address the pro-visions set forth for wireless E-911.

E-911 If you need to contact emergency services by using your wireless device, it may work or it may not. There is far more potential to be tapped in order to make 911 work well in a wireless environment. Consumers and mainstream press lash out at the industry with complaints that emergency calls do not go through. This challenge came to a peak in a PrimeTime Live segment last November, which claimed that wireless carriers prevent some E-911 calls by blocking subscribers from using competitors' signals.

According to Pohs, these claims are isolated incidents and not representative of the real problem at hand.

"There are vagaries that occur within the framework of any business, and that would explain that claim," Pohs said. "But I know that in our company, and I would speak for most every other carrier that I know, it is not policy on their part whatsoever to block a 911 call. There is no commercial gain from our point of view as a carrier. It (911) is a public service that we're delighted to offer."

But with today's conditions, it is difficult to offer the complete 911 service consumers are demanding. One organization, The Ad Hoc Alliance for Public Access to 911, released its proposal on how to remedy the troubles. The group claims the way to improve 911 is to modify wireless handsets. But according to CTIA, technical reviews determined that these modifications actually would not improve call completion. The only real answer to the problem, CTIA said, is additional antennas.

Pohs agreed that E-911 issues are directly related to the antenna moratoria problems. Carriers are facing many delays because of moratoria and other restrictions set by local governments. According to Pohs, it is a Catch-22: Congress and some communities are blocking the construction of new sites, yet they are demanding better wireless 911 service. In order to provide that, wireless carriers need more sites.

"The only way we're going to be able to efficiently and effectively offer the safety that all of our subscribers and constituents have and should have is by getting relief on antenna siting," Pohs said.

In addition to the war on moratoria, carriers and vendors are working diligently to meet E-911 regulatory requirements by implementing location technology. According to CTIA, many trials are complete and the first phase of location technology will be available in April.

NEGATIVE PRESS The financial twists and turns of C-block licensees have brought their own share of negative publicity to the wireless industry. Despite the doubts and criticisms, the C-block providers are still an important part of the future marketplace, according to Pohs.

"I don't think they should fold their tents and go away," he said. "I'm a believer in competition. I believe that the C-block folks are necessary for the minority and the smaller businesses. Of course, it got a little bit distorted in the final analysis when a few folks got overly enthusiastic. But at the same time, I think it would be good for the industry if they not only survive, but become viable entities in the marketplace."

But before that can happen, C-block players still have some critical decisions to make. Everyone will be watching closely as they choose one of the four separate options the FCC provided. And funding opportunities may influence some of their decisions once the World Trade Organization allows additional foreign investment in the United States.

At the same time, Pohs added, other international problems may create even more challenges.

"I believe that the unrest in the Asian markets may preclude that flow of funds, which some of the C-block folks may have been counting on," he said. "With that occurring, there may have to be a rethinking of which of those four options they now really want."

INTERNATIONAL STRATEGIES Eyes are on the global marketplace not only for financing issues, but also for competitive strategies. GSM subscribers in other countries are able to roam in numerous countries. U.S. subscribers on the other hand, are faced with roaming limitations. Have U.S. carriers isolated themselves and their subscribers from the rest of the world?

"No, not actually," Pohs said. "The fact that we've got several protocols on the digital side certainly doesn't make it easy ... we always seem to find a way to complicate things ... but in the final analysis, those strategies always turn out to be the best."

According to Pohs, carriers and roaming subscribers make the best of limitations in worldwide roaming. When Europeans roam to the United States, they obtain or bring phones that work here. They do not rely on just one instrument. Conversely, when U.S. subscribers go to Europe, they do the same. It's similar to the dual-mode idea that U.S. carriers have implemented with PCS. Digital carriers want to give the largest footprint, so they have roaming agreements with other carriers so that phones will default immediately to the analog network. With these accommodations, Pohs said, U.S. carriers haven't isolated themselves.

ACTION IN 3G Third-generation technology has inspired different views on implementation and rollout. To date, the major network vendors have presented their ideas. The optimistic predict that third-generation systems will be ready in as little as three years. But according to Pohs, it will take more than just a few years to get ready, considering that 48 million of the 54 million U.S. subscribers still are analog.

"Generally, I think it's going to take a whole lot longer than just a few years," Pohs said. "First, we've got to get the digital protocols down before we can start thinking in terms of broadband, wideband and the transmission of high-speed data and video via wireless."

Nevertheless, carriers of all sizes still are preparing for the opportunities that new third-generation technology promises to bring, even rural America, according to Pohs. Having spent 15 years addressing the needs of small markets, Pohs often serves as the voice for rural carriers and bridges the needs of both large and small carriers.

"Certainly, the challenges are greater, but at the same time the needs and desires of these folks usually are not as critical because they're not totally exposed to the on-going advertising and promotions, so there's not additional pressure from the competition (to provide these capabilities)," he said.

Will rural American subscribers ever want or be willing to pay for these advanced capabilities?

"They have the same needs and desires as in urban settings ... the need is there," Pohs said. "I believe we can deliver anything and everything that you can in urban areas. We can do it efficiently and effectively, and the need is there."

According to Pohs, the industry shouldn't make the same misjudgment made in the early days of cellular. Many people assumed rural America didn't need the same advanced wireless services that urban America did. But, according to Pohs, "rural folks" want and need these advanced capabilities just as much, if not, more than people in metropolitan areas. With the outstanding success of basic wireless voice, "we've proved it," he said.

CLEARING THE WATERS If you come upon a muddy stream, you can deduce it is muddy because of some disturbance upstream or perhaps a recent rainstorm. If the disturbance is corrected and balance returns, the stream will run clear. Pohs and his rural subscribers know this. And Pohs knows the same can be said about the muddy waters of wireless.