Dave,
I second Jay's comments. Great job!
Coy
--
Coy Day, N5OK
20685 SW 29
Union City, OK
73090
405-483-5632
Sumner, Dave, K1ZZ wrote:
>
Last week in a presentation at Georgetown University, FCC Chairman Martin
> used a "BPL Deployment" map taken right off the
United Power Line
> Council's Web site. It's the same map,
incidentally, that was on display
> at the FCC's open meeting
last August at which the BPL Memorandum Opinion
> and Order
dispensing with the reconsideration petitions was adopted.
>
> This made me see red. After clearing it with Chris and Joel, this
morning
> I sent the following letter to Chairman Martin. We will
give it suitable
> publicity as well.
>
> Dave
>
>
> December 6, 2006
>
>
> Kevin J. Martin, Chairman
> Federal Communications
Commission
> 445 Twelfth Street, SW
> Washington, DC
20554
>
> Via FAX - Page 1 of 3 pages
>
> Dear Chairman Martin:
>
> In your November 30
presentation to the Georgetown University McDonough
> School of
Business's Center for Business and Public Policy, you included a
> slide purporting to show "Broadband Over Power Line
Deployments." This
> slide is taken from a biased industry
source and fails to note that a
> large percentage of the
deployments shown on the map have been shut down
> and no longer
exist.
>
> Here are but a few examples:
> * PPL
announced in October 2005, more than a year ago, that it was
>
terminating its trial deployment because it had been found to be
> uneconomic.
> * United Illuminating announced two trial
deployments, but only ever
> installed one and shut that one down
in December 2005 after a few months
> of operation.
> *
SMECO announced in March 2006 that it had ended its trial in December
> 2005 and noted that "BPL signal speeds and bandwidth are not
competitive
> with other technologies currently available."
> * The Idaho Power deployment was by IDACOMM, which announced in
January
> 2006 that it was abandoning the BPL business (and has
done so).
> * RPU has no BPL deployed. I confirmed this by
telephone yesterday. They
> had an unsuccessful Main.net trial
deployment in 2004.
>
> This list is by no means
comprehensive. The fact is that BPL systems are
> being shut down
faster than they are being deployed. The ARRL respectfully
>
requests that the FCC cease using the United Power Line Council as a
> source for illustrating BPL deployments.
>
> We
also request that in the spirit of a level playing-field that you say
> is a guiding regulatory principle, you consider a more evenhanded
approach
> to the promotion of so-called nascent broadband
technologies. For example,
> your prepared remarks cited
"wireless broadband, broadband over powerline,
> and
Fiber-to-the-Home" all as "new technologies that are beginning
to be
> deployed," yet neither wireless broadband nor
Fiber-to-the-Home merited a
> PowerPoint slide - despite the fact
that the FCC Report, High-Speed
> Services for Internet Access:
Status as of December 31, 2005 showed
> 448,196 Fiber lines and
256,538 Fixed Wireless "lines" compared to just
> 5,859
for "Power Line and Other." Your prepared remarks do not even
> mention satellite broadband, yet the same report shows 426,928
satellite
> "lines."
>
> As you know,
the ARRL's concern is with the still-unresolved radio
>
interference issues that uniquely plague BPL and not with BPL as such.
> However, it is evident that the technology does not deserve the
favored
> treatment the FCC continues to bestow upon it,
especially when its
> inherent shortcoming, that it is a radio
spectrum polluter, escapes
> mention.
>
>
Sincerely,
>
>
>
> David Sumner
> Chief Executive Officer
>
> Attachment:
"Broadband Over Powerline Deployments" slide
>
> cc: Commissioners
>
>