FCC Wireless Bureau weighed in last week on side of mobile operat...

location information (ALI) databases used by public safety answering points (PSAPs) to locate 911 callers. In recent filings, BellSouth argued FCC precedent supported recovering certain network upgrade costs for E911 Phase 2 from carriers. BS proposed recovering costs for E2 interface, which it will install to upgrade its database, via usage-based charge assessed on wireless carriers. E2 interface is used to send query from ALI database to mobile positioning center maintained by wireless carriers, requesting transmission of location information back to ALI database. But Sprint PCS and Verizon Wireless said FCC precedent indicated costs associated with such upgrades were purview of PSAPs. In Oct. 28 letter, Wireless Bureau Chief Thomas Sugrue said absent agreement among companies to contrary, FCC decisions on Phase 2 were that responsibility for ALI database upgrade costs lay with public safety entities, not wireless carriers. He said FCC view was that rollout of E911 remained purview of “cooperative joint efforts and good-faith negotiations” among all those parties. But he said FCC had directed Wireless Bureau, “in the event of an impasse in such negotiations that is delaying the deployment of wireless E911 services” to help resolve disagreements. Such impasse appeared to have been reached that’s holding back planned Phase 2 test in Spartanburg/Greenville, S.C. “It appears likely that failure to address this dispute promptly will result in delays in other Phase 2 tests and deployments,” Sugrue said. Past FCC order issued in response to request for clarification from King County, Wash., made clear that proper demarcation point for allocating costs between wireless operators and PSAPs was input to 911 selective router that ILEC maintained. Costs that order said were responsibility of PSAPs included ALI database, Sugrue said. His letter said E2 interface that was focus of current dispute was software upgrade to ALI database. “As such, costs associated with implementing the interface are the responsibility of the PSAP” under FCC decisions concerning King County, he said. BellSouth had argued FCC didn’t intend that PSAPs be responsible for E2 functionality because it went beyond existing 911 system to retrieve location information from mobile positioning center of wireless carrier. But in his letter, Sugrue said King County decisions stipulated demarcation point, with wireless carriers bearing E911 costs up to that point and PSAPs handling costs beyond it. “Aside from being inconsistent with the language of the King County decisions, BellSouth’s approach would fundamentally undercut the Commission’s purpose in setting a ‘bright line’ demarcation point,” letter said.