LightSquared faces Congressional hearing over proposed 4G network, submits revised plan

The LightSquared Express rolled in to Washington yesterday, where the home Committee on Science, Space and Technology held a hearing at the company’s proposed 4G LTE network and its potential impact on GPS systems. In line with some, the ramifications may well be disastrous. David Applegate, associate director of natural hazards on the US Geological Survey, told legislators that interference with GPS mechanisms would make it tougher for authorities to foretell floods, landslides and volcanic eruptions, with a representative from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration adding that LightSquared’s ground-based mobile network would pose challenges to weather forecasters, besides. The dept of Transportation also chimed in, telling the committee that the network would likely impact systems used to avoid train collisions and, like other administration witnesses, called for further testing.

LightSquared Executive Vice chairman Jeffrey Carlisle, meanwhile, defended his company’s proposal, pointing to an amended version submitted to the FCC on Wednesday. Within the revised document, LightSquared offered to cut back the network’s power levels further, while providing a stable signal for GPS augmentation services to exploit at higher frequencies. “This isn’t a 0-sum game,” Carlisle said, adding that only 500,000 to 750,000 high-end GPS services will be suffering from LightSquared’s low-frequency alternative (which, the corporate claims, will cost an extra $100 million to implement). Any interference issues, he continued, stem from pre-existing receiver problems that the GPS industry should’ve addressed by now. Many of the lawmakers sitting at the panel acknowledged the necessity to establish broader wireless coverage, but stressed the significance of doing so without jeopardizing critical transit and emergency response systems, with some calling for added testing. Carlisle countered that previous tests have provided sufficient feedback, but ultimate approval lies within the hands of the FCC, which has not yet offered a timetable for its decision. Hit up the source link to read LightSquared’s revised proposal, in its entirety.