PLMR Operators Ask FCC to Quickly Investigate DTV Interference
The Land Mobile Communications Council sought “expedited FCC action” to address alleged harmful interference from newly authorized DTV stations to Part 90 private land mobile radio (PLMR) systems. “This interference has rendered affected PLMR facilities entirely unusable in certain markets,…
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resulting in hundreds of thousands of dollars of lost revenue as customers of commercial systems are forced to search for alternative communication options and incurred expenses as licensees have sought remedial action by the broadcasters and/or acquired other spectrum to which their operations could be moved,” said a Friday filing by the group. “The interference with what had been reliable communications endangers the safety of employees, disrupts operations at affected facilities, and poses a major threat to public safety in certain instances,” the council said: “The urgency of the problems demand FCC action to enforce those regulations and policies as promptly as possible and to avoid the creation of similar problems in the future.” The filing cites incidents in major markets from New York to Los Angeles, mostly focused on co-channel interference in the T-band, which is considered the most difficult problem to solve. Enterprise Wireless Alliance President Mark Crosby said in a statement. “Some EWA members are so frustrated that they wonder if the reaction of a few TV stations might be ‘There is nothing we can do; the environment is the root cause; we didn’t want to move in the first place; or, maybe the PLMR incumbents will go away in time and leave us alone,’” he said: “These are unacceptable responses as the PLMR industry is as vital to the well-being of this country as are broadcasters, even if not as well known. The LMCC seeks only a fair hearing and the FCC’s active support towards a resolution.” Fletcher Heald’s Peter Tannenwald told us he has been in the thick of one of the fights for a low-power station. “It is very difficult to determine what the actual facts are, partly because the land mobile people seem to want to be at war, in the sense that they want complete victory more than a compromise resolution, and partly because field observation that you really need to pin down the problem is nearly impossible during the pandemic,” Tannenwald said: “The FCC doesn’t make things any easier, because it talks to both sides ex parte, through different bureaus. Then the Wireless and Media bureaus talk, and we don’t know what goes on between them.” NAB is reviewing the filing, a spokesperson said.