FCC BEGINS INQUIRY INTO POWER LINE TECHNOLOGY

The technology, called Broadband over Power Line (BPL), also is seen as a possible easier way to provide broadband service in remote areas of the country. FCC Comr. Abernathy said it was “exciting” that the technology had come far enough for the Commission to open an inquiry. No one knows yet whether that technology is “scalable” but the Commission doesn’t need to know that yet, she said. The FCC’s job is simply to assure its rules don’t impede the possible development of BPL, Abernathy said.

Comr. Copps questioned why the FCC’s inquiry was limited to technical questions, rather than also tackling regulatory issues. For example, he said, the agency could look at the potential for cross-subsidies by power companies and the implications of BPL to universal service and pole attachments. However, Comr. Adelstein said he thought it would be better to consider regulatory issues after the Commission knew more about the technical questions. FCC Chmn. Powell said the inquiry could be “a monumental moment” when a 3rd route to the home began to gain credence. “The Commission should be a cheerleader,” he said.

BPL travels over medium-voltage power lines to a site near the customer’s home or office. It then either moves over the low voltage line that goes into the home or office or is transmitted there via wireless technology. In either case, customers can plug a module into any power outlet to get communications service.

The FCC said the inquiry also would look at in-house BPL applications, the use of electric utility wiring to network computers and printers, and smart appliances, within a building. The Commission said existing in-house “carrier current systems” have been successful but have operated with relatively limited communications capability on frequencies below 2 MHz over a narrow spectrum bandwidth. Faster chipsets and the development of more sophisticated modulation techniques have produced new digital power line designs that are spread over a frequency range of 2 to 80 MHz with the capability of high data rates.

The agency emphasized that while it conducted the inquiry, providers of BPL equipment were free to deploy networks because they operated under unlicensed Part 15 rules. Any rule changes as a result of this proceeding will require future compliance only, FCC officials said. Some providers are planning to introduce commercial service by the end of the year. The agency also emphasized it wasn’t going into this proceeding with the assumption that interference was occurring. “Our job is to find out if there is interference, not to predict interference,” said Ed Thomas, chief of the FCC’s Office of Engineering & Technology.

The inquiry will seek: (1) Information on potential interference, if any, to authorized spectrum users. (2) Test results from BPL experimental sites. (3) Views on what measurement procedure would be best for testing emissions so there would be consistency of test data. Thomas said it was important to devise a “reasonable” measurement system because power lines were “distributed systems.” The question is how to check for emissions in the event of a problem without having to measure every installation, he said. (4) Whether any changes should be made in Part 15 technical rules and the equipment approval process to foster the development of BPL and ensure against interference.

The future of BPL will depend on “progressive” policies not only at the federal level but also in the states, the United Power Line Council (UPLC) said. Welcoming the FCC’s inquiry as a “historic moment,” it said the industry wanted to work with states to eliminate “obstacles” that would discourage BPL deployment by investor-owned, municipal and cooperatively organized utilities. “Encouraging utilities to deploy this nascent technology will stimulate investment in facilities-based competition, drive economic growth and help to remedy the digital divide,” the UPLC said. Congress had sought to encourage utility entry in the retail telecom market by a process that exempted certain utilities from restrictions that otherwise would prevent them from offering communications services, it said. The Power Line Communications Assn. (PLCA) predicted a large-scale rollout of BPL services in the next 18-24 months because it said field trials had been “extremely positive” and the infrastructure already was in place.

USTA heralded BPL as another reason to apply regulation in a more consistent way across all types of broadband services -- a veiled way of saying the agency should lessen wireline regulation. While cable modem, satellite and now power line technologies “all operate virtually free from federal regulation, DSL providers, which serve a smaller portion of the market than other providers, are heavily burdened by outdated rules,” USTA Pres. Walter McCormick said. BellSouth Vp Herschel Abbott offered a similar message, saying it was good that alternative technologies such as BPL essentially were unregulated, but the FCC also should deregulate DSL. “Regulation cannot keep pace with the speed of technological change,” Abbott said.

NTIA Dir. Nancy Victory offered to help the FCC with measuring and testing duties: “Our staff stands ready to discuss the details of such a collaboration.” She urged the FCC to move quickly to adopt any needed rule changes to encourage BPL because President Bush had emphasized the importance to the economy of widespread broadband deployment: “By moving swiftly to establish appropriate rules for [BPL], the Commission can provide this emerging industry with a solid foundation upon which to build new services and products that will benefit American consumers.”