Remarks for Michael K. Powell

Chairman, Federal Communications Commission

at WISPCON

October 27, 2004

Las Vegas, Nevada

(As prepared for delivery)

"WISPs: Bringing the Benefits of Broadband to Rural America"

Thank you for the kind introduction. It is a great pleasure and
privilege for me to have the opportunity to address this audience of
Wireless Internet Service Providers.

Adopting policies that foster increased availability of broadband
alternatives and competition is one of the most important goals of the
FCC. You have helped to transform our policy goals into a bandwidth-rich
reality in the unlicensed spectrum bands. I have tried to be an advocate
for the transformative impact of unlicensed services -- in short, "I
believe!"

Historically, these unlicensed bands were dubbed "junk" bands because of
the plethora of devices and manufacturing equipment occupying them --
devices and equipment not used for communications purposes, but
occupying spectrum only because RF energy was a byproduct of their
operations. Now, spectrum that was formerly the exclusive province of
microwave ovens and industrial equipment also plays host to wireless
broadband networks that provide not only last-mile connectivity, but
last-30-50-mile connectivity. In fact, and impressive by all accounts,
some of your networks span large geographic regions, even covering
several states. And, perhaps most importantly, many of you provide
service in rural and remote communities that have no other broadband
option \-- demonstrating that, with relatively small investments, hard
work, and ingenuity, broadband services are possible for everyone.

You are among my broadband heroes -- spinning wheat into gold \--
turning the spectrum "junk" bands into venues for providing increasingly
important services to businesses and consumers. You are leading a
grassroots broadband movement that is growing throughout the country in
communities across America -- in places like Colusa, California; Helena,
Montana; Scotts Bluff, Nebraska; Flora, Illinois; and Holbrook, New
York.

I know I don't need to tell this audience that it's what's behind the
FCC's drive to facilitate broadband deployment that excites me about all
of this.

-   Access to broadband translates into improved access to education --
    enabling people in rural or remote areas to take classes at far away
    universities and schoolchildren to be home schooled.

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-   Access to broadband translates into improved access to medical
    services, through telemedicine applications -- enabling communities
    everywhere to have virtual communications to the top doctors and
    medical facilities.

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-   Access to broadband translates into economic development -- enabling
    new jobs so that people can stay and find work in the communities in
    which they live.

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-   Access to broadband translates into closer community ties --
    enabling communities to stay in touch through e-mail and web sites.

You have helped bring your communities all of these benefits.

Self-empowerment -- that's the idea I most associate with our unlicensed
rules -- and an idea that's so much a part of the fabric of the American
way. Low equipment costs, free access to spectrum, and regulatory
flexibility empower anyone who wants to provide broadband services. It's
the "democratization of communications". We help to give you the tools
and provide the freedom to build, and observe, with delight, the
results.

I have been fortunate to see some of these results firsthand. Recently,
I had the opportunity to visit a studio called the Manhattan
Neighborhood Network (MNN), which makes use of WiFi technology in a
novel way. MNN provides facilities that allow average citizens to
produce their own programs for airing on public access channels. Members
of the community can check out top quality video cameras and produce and
edit their own programs, using off-the-shelf equipment. Partnering with
WISPs and others throughout the city, MNN can transmit live video to its
studio for broadcast. I was interviewed by some kids who were running
their own Youth Channel. They conducted the interview offsite and
transmitted it wirelessly from a WiFi hotspot. Now, any WiFi hotspot in
New York can be a studio for MNN. The Manhattan Neighborhood Network
demonstrates all the good that can come from hard work and creativity --
it's a very real American success story using the unlicensed bands.

Our unlicensed rules have been a hotbed for wireless broadband
innovation -- spawning new industries like your own and encouraging
significant capital investment. It is estimated that by next year, sales
of wireless networking equipment will exceed \$5 billion. Our regulatory
flexibility in this area has helped to enable this thriving industry.

We continue to look for more ways to encourage growth of unlicensed
wireless broadband services. Last year, we made an additional 255 MHz of
spectrum available in the 5 GHz region of the spectrum -- adding a
sizable chunk of spectrum to that already available for unlicensed
devices. We also made spectrum available in the upper reaches of the
spectrum -- above 70 GHz -- on an unlicensed and very lightly licensed
basis. Technologies that use this new spectrum frontier are rapidly
maturing and new services are on the horizon. We are also in the process
of considering additional spectrum bands for use by unlicensed devices
-- the so-called spectrum "white spaces" between the channels assigned
for TV broadcast services and 50 MHz of spectrum in the 3650 MHz band.

In addition to looking at how we can provide more spectrum for
additional capacity of wireless networks, we have also looked at ways in
which we can provide more operational flexibility. We have looked at
this issue of flexibility with particular focus on what we can do to
facilitate additional spectrum-based services in rural areas --
including more technical and operational flexibility to make deployments
more economical.

New wireless technologies show considerable promise for wireless
broadband services. We recently concluded a proceeding that enabled
"smart" antennas to be used in some of our unlicensed bands. "Smart"
radios are another new technology that enable users to use the spectrum
more intensively. Smart radios can facilitate secondary markets -- that
is, licensed users could lease their spectrum to third parties using
smart radio technologies. And, because of their frequency agility, smart
radios could also act as a bridge between two different radio services
-- effectively translating the signals from one service to the frequency
and format of another. The possible uses for "smart" radios are wide
ranging. The challenge before the Commission is to determine how we can
open the door for these technologies so as not to shut out any of their
tremendous potential.

New technologies are simply better tools for you -- the service
providers -- to use. Technology can't substitute for human creativity
and ingenuity. From what I've seen, it's no accident that the term
engineer and ingenuity derive from the same Latin root. One shining
example of creativity and ingenuity that I have seen using unlicensed
wireless broadband technologies is in the Tribal Digital Village of
Southern California. Using a network of WiFi devices, eighteen Native
American reservations located in a remote region \-- spanning more than
150 miles \-- now have broadband connectivity. The project had many
technical challenges \-- the terrain is rocky, mountainous, and has deep
valleys -- making it hard to achieve line of sight. Creative solutions
for supplying power to the network access points were also needed -- so,
the Native Americans used solar power and, in one location, even used a
car battery. The fruits of their efforts have been substantial -- among
many other benefits, the 12,000 Native Americans in that area can now
take classes at a distant university and their youth can now access the
Internet and listen to archived recordings of elders speaking Native
languages -- helping them to preserve their rich culture. As I said,
there is no technical substitute for the human spirit.

While today I have focused primarily on what the FCC has done in the
area of unlicensed wireless broadband services, there have been similar
parallel, positive developments in the area of licensed wireless
broadband services as well. For example, we have facilitated spectrum
leasing for licensees and streamlined our process for license
assignments and transfers. This flexibility allows spectrum users to
make choices as to how they will use spectrum, taking into account
market factors, including customer demand and availability of
technology.

I understand that many of you are considering how you can make use of
licensed spectrum for network backhaul or other applications. This is
the beginning of a new wireless broadband future. We are moving to a
future of fully integrated wireless networks. That is, the real issue is
not whether you use licensed spectrum or unlicensed devices, or both. Or
even whether you use one type of broadband platform or another. It's an
issue of what fits and where. At the FCC, we want service providers to
have the flexibility to optimize their own networks based on factors
like geography, types of applications, and the number of subscribers --
not as a function of non-market based regulations. We've already begun
to see providers mixing and matching technologies -- major cellular
carriers are integrating their networks with WiFi hotspots and some
broadband over power line providers are using WiFi to get from the power
lines at the curb to inside the home.

We'd like to do more to facilitate the provisioning of wireless
broadband services. Last May, I created the Wireless Broadband Access
Task Force to conduct a comprehensive review of our wireless broadband
policies to determine whether we can do more, especially to see what
policies might further encourage WISPs. We'd like to see how we can add
more tools to the broadband tool box to enable service providers like
yourselves to better serve your communities.

There are a few issues that the Task Force has identified as
particularly important to the license-exempt community that I would like
to talk about.

As license-exempt spectrum is used more and more intensively,
interference mitigation among unlicensed users is an increasingly
important issue. Recognizing this, in communities as diverse as San
Francisco and rural West Texas, private industry has formed frequency
coordination groups. These efforts help to optimize the operation of
everyone's networks and, in turn, consumers benefit through enhanced and
more reliable services. I applaud these private initiatives. They enable
communities of service providers to self-monitor their deployments and
manage interference on a real-time basis. To the extent they fit local
needs, I would like to see more of these initiatives taking hold
throughout the country.

Another way to better leverage the amount of spectrum to which WISPs
already have access is through the adoption of voluntary industry Best
Practices. I like to think of Best Practices as reference manuals for
being a good spectrum neighbor. I understand that the License Exempt
Alliance has formed a working group to develop model Best Practices
industry-wide and I look forward to seeing the final results of this
effort. Of course, as I've indicated, the best practice for the FCC in
this is a deregulatory one and I want to emphasize that any industry
Best Practices would only be voluntary.

I also want you to know that we are there for you -- to back you up --
to enforce our rules as the need arises. I hear concerns from the WISP
community that -- while it's not a significant number \-- not everyone
is playing by the rules -- that a few folks out there are using non-FCC
certified equipment or are installing power amplifiers to boost their
signals beyond allowable limits. Understand this directly from me -- we
are fully committed to enforcing our technical rules. Indeed, over the
last two years, we have investigated approximately one dozen complaints
related to WISPs for non-compliance with our rules. Moreover, during my
tenure as Chairman, we have significantly ramped up the resources in our
enforcement field offices -- increasing the total investment by more
than 5 times. Also, our investment in the FCC's engineering laboratory
has increased by more than 20 times -- providing us with much more
sophisticated tools for technical analyses. So, in an era of
increasingly more intensive spectrum use, we now have the improved tools
to do our jobs policing the airwaves.

The reason the unlicensed bands have been a model of success is that we
set up a framework of flexible, non-prescriptive rules for operation --
rules that have spawned considerable innovation and economic benefits.
But these rules are the result of a careful balance between protecting
existing authorized services from interference and providing the maximum
opportunities for many different types of unlicensed operations. Let's
not let a few wayward operators spoil a good thing.

I wanted to take this opportunity to stress that we need to hear from
you. Be proactive, weigh in, and make your needs known. I am very
enthusiastic about all of the possibilities of "smart" antennas and
"smart" radios, but technology can't do everything. We need your input
to help the FCC to make "smart" policy decisions. Right now, we have
several ongoing FCC proceedings that have potentially significant impact
on the WISP community \-- the 3650 MHz proceeding, the cognitive radio
proceeding, and the TV White space proceeding, to name a few.

One of the most important roles of the Wireless Broadband Access Task
Force has been to conduct outreach -- in part to spread the good-news
story of the fruits of all of your labors and entice others to follow in
your footsteps, and in part to go to different parts of the country to
let folks know what's going on at the FCC and how it might affect your
industry (hopefully in a positive way). Through these events, I have had
the opportunity to meet with some of you to see demonstrations of your
products and services. I have appreciated the opportunity to learn more
about your industry, how it works, and how we can help. I look forward
to hearing more from you today.

One day, broadband services will know no boundary. Because of your
efforts, that day is fast approaching.