December 14, 2010
Via ECFS
Marlene H. Dortch, Secretary
Federal Communications Commission
445 12th Street, S.W.
Washington, D.C. 20554
Re: Written Ex Parte Presentation
ET Docket Nos. 09-191 and WC Docket No. 07-52
Dear Ms. Dortch:
My company, Wavelinc Communications, provides Fixed Wireless broadband service in
Crawford County, Ohio. We rely primarily on unlicensed spectrum to deliver broadband services
to consumers that have few broadband choices. We built our network from scratch using devices
authorized under Part 15 rules the FCC adopted to open up 900 MHz, 2.4 GHz, 3.65 GHz and 5
GHz spectrum for unlicensed or light licensed broadband devices. Thanks to the Commission?s
initiatives; consumers, businesses, and government services in the Crawford County area can now
get broadband service. Providing reliable and affordable broadband service wirelessly in this area
is EXTREAMLY challenging. But we have been able to get the job done and have done it well.
By managing our network as we see fit we have been able to service many customers with
reliable high speed broadband many of which have no other options. However if the commission
adopts the net neutrality rules we would not be able to continue to provide this service either at all
or as reliable as we are doing it today.
Wavelinc is concerned that certain Network Neutrality rules, if adopted, would severely
and adversely affect our ability to continue to provide our customers with affordable Fixed
Wireless broadband services. It is our understanding that although mobile broadband will have a
special set of rules, Fixed Wireless broadband will be lumped in with traditional wired services
and be subject to a stricter set of rules. We feel that the Network Neutrality rules imposed on
Fixed Wireless broadband should be no more rigid than the rules that will apply to mobile
wireless broadband providers. The physics of wireless technology and delivery necessitate a
relaxed set of rules for all wireless technologies.
Many of the proposed rules will destroy our industry, our business and our customers?
Internet experience. We believe wireless networks, either Fixed or mobile, will be unable to
operate effectively if the definition of what constitutes ?reasonable? network management
practices does not account for the unique obstacles faced by small businesses with congested
networks, bandwidth constraints, tower and middle-mile access limitations and a lack of
investment capital. For many households in rural America, this will mean the loss of
broadband services entirely at a time when the country is seeking to accomplish ubiquitous
coverage.
We need to face the reality that content delivery and demand is outpacing the technology
and spectrum available to meet consumer demands, especially for Fixed Wireless networks that
have limited spectrum, capacity and throughput. Many regions of our country do not have the
wireline broadband infrastructure available to meet this demand. The past has proven that often
times it is economically unfeasible to build new wireline infrastructure in rural areas; thus Fixed
Wireless broadband is often the only economical delivery mechanism to deliver quality
broadband services to those households that have been overlooked or bypassed by traditional
wireline Internet providers.
It should not be taken lightly that the FCC was charged by the ARRA to write a National
Broadband Plan so that all Americans could receive affordable broadband service. If the
proposed rules are approved, this one action alone would cripple this goal. Why would the FCC
protect one method of wireless broadband delivery and not apply the same good fortune to a
similar technology that is in place and actively servicing many people and businesses today? As
Fixed Wireless technology improves, and more spectrum is opened to the Fixed Wireless
industry, then a more relaxed set of Network Neutrality rules may be revisited in the future, but
now is not the proper time.
In nearly every industry in the world, flow is managed, whether it is sewer systems,
hydraulic fluid, natural gas, air traffic, the highway system, or countless other systems. Flow
management is essential for orderly delivery of a medium in a safe and effective process. Data is
no different than anything mentioned above. Without proper management, systems will fail and
the data highways will be disrupted, leaving millions of businesses and residents without service.
Companies that are building and maintaining the data highways should be able to control
and manage the traffic coming in and out of their network as they see fit, in order to effectively
deliver the high levels of sustained traffic that are starting to clog the Internet.
The majority of Fixed Wireless networks have been completely funded with private
funds and organic growth. As Internet traffic grows exponentially, Fixed Wireless broadband
providers are seeing not only their middle mile transport costs increasing but last mile transport
costs increasing exponentially as well. Given the state of our current economy, we do not feel
that we can pass these increased costs on to our customers. This is not a time to increase
regulation in order to satisfy the consumer thirst for more content delivered to their doorstep for
the same cost that they are currently paying.. The economics just do not justify it.
Our company supports the positions taken by WISPA, the Wireless Internet Service
Providers Association in their Ex Parte presentation filed on December 10, 2010.
Sincerely,
Kurt Fankhauser, owner
Wavelinc Communications