LightSquared Revises Network Plan to Avoid GPS Interference

In an effort to appease the FCC (News - Alert) and its many critics, LightSquared recently said that it will use a different band of spectrum for its wholesale LTE network so that it doesn't interfere with GPS services.

The Virginia-based wireless startup, owned by Philip Falcone's Harbinger Capital Partners (News - Alert) hedge fund, proposed a plan to use a 10 MHz sliver of L-band spectrum, rather than the block of airwaves that the company originally targeted, according to a release.

Results of government tests shows that LightSquared's originally proposed network would interfere with GPS receivers, leading many device makers and government agencies to protest the move. The network was found to hamper the GPS receivers used by the Coast Guard, NASA and the Federal Aviation Administration, according to the Associated Press. An opposition group known as the Coalition to Save Our GPS formed to fight the network.

The FCC, which approved LightSquared's proposal to build a next-generation wireless network in January, told the company that it could not launch the network until the GPS concerns were put to rest. LightSquared was given a July 1 deadline to resolve the issue.

The company's proposed fix involves using a lower spectrum band from satellite firm Inmarsat. LightSquared said that it had planned to move to this frequency block in the next two to three years anyway, pending the growth the business.

"This should resolve interference challenges for 99.5 percent of GPS receivers in this country," Chief Executive Officer Sanjiv Ahuja (News - Alert) told Bloomberg. "We believe this clears the path for us to move forward with a coast-to-coast broadband network launch."

LightSquared said that it will also reduce the power of its base station transmitters by more than 50 percent in an effort to further prevent GPS interference.

Ahuja told Bloomberg (News - Alert) that the company will submit a formal proposal to the FCC by the end of the month.

Meanwhile, Jim Kirkland, vice president and general counsel of Trimble, a founding member of the Coalition to Save Our GPS, called the new proposal a "Hail Mary." He said in a statement that the lower band would still interfere with many "critical" GPS devices.

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Beecher Tuttle is a TMCnet contributor. He has extensive experience writing and editing for print publications and online news websites. He has specialized in a variety of industries, including health care technology, politics and education. To read more of his articles, please visit his columnist page.

Edited by Carrie Schmelkin