Subject: [NEXTEL-1] Northrop Grumman Petitions FCC for Rulemaking on Additional Broadband Spectrum for Public Safety

From: [email-masked]
Date: Wed, 28 May 2003 13:33:10 -0400

Northrop Grumman Petitions FCC for Rulemaking on Additional Broadband Spectrum
for Public Safety
Tuesday May 27, 10:00 am ET

HERNDON, Va., May 27, 2003 (PRIMEZONE) -- Northrop Grumman Corporation's
(NYSE:NOC - News) Information Technology (IT) sector has submitted a petition
for rulemaking to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) for an
additional 10 MHz of public safety spectrum that will permit deployment of
advanced broadband wireless applications needed by first responders.

``Wireless technology will rapidly change over the next three to four years as
the transition is made to public safety,'' said Mike Grady, chief technology
officer, Northrop Grumman IT. ``The adaptation of software defined radios and
the reallocation of spectrum will address interoperability as well as
adaptation of broadband services.''

This additional spectrum would further the national effort to adequately meet
the critical emergency response and homeland security needs of public safety
entities post-September 11; permit federal, state, and local government
authorities to deploy advanced broadband wireless high-speed data
applications; meet critical interoperability requirements; and serve the
public interest. Additionally, allocation of this spectrum would make possible
the Department of Homeland Security's strategic vision for a converged,
high-speed wireless network for public safety and law enforcement.

``While the commercial world continues to move toward third-generation
broadband wireless technologies, the public safety and law enforcement
community is prevented from taking advantage of any updated applications
because the present public safety spectrum allocation cannot be used to deploy
advanced broadband services,'' said Royce Kincaid, program manager, wireless
initiatives, Northrop Grumman IT TASC. ``The situation is especially hazardous
to first responders given their paramount role in homeland security and
fighting terrorism.''

Northrop Grumman IT has urged the FCC to consider the relative merits and
viability of particular spectrum bands to meet this need, and to identify
spectrum to establish a nationwide, Internet Protocol-based, interoperable
communications network that will support broadband services. Specifically,
Northrop Grumman IT has requested the FCC to seek comment on the provision of
an additional 10 MHz of spectrum, located below three GHz, preferably at
747-752 and 777-782 MHz or elsewhere in the 700 MHz Band.

``Any new allocation of public safety spectrum in the 700 MHz Band must enable
use of advanced, 'next-generation' broadband technologies that are available
today that Congress may not have envisioned when it allocated public safety
spectrum in 1997,'' Grady added.

Northrop Grumman is seeking expeditious treatment of its request by the FCC to
release this document to the industry for comment.
Northrop Grumman Information Technology, headquartered in Herndon, Va., is a
trusted IT leader and premier provider of advanced IT solutions, engineering
and business services for government and commercial clients. The company's
expertise spans such areas as information systems integration; information
technology security; command, control, communications, computers,
intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (C4ISR); enterprise hardware and
software solutions; training and simulation; base and range support; signals
intelligence; health informatics; space systems; and specialized scientific,
engineering and technical services.

Contact:
Juli Ballesteros
Northrop Grumman Information Technology
(703) 713-4675
[email-masked]

http://biz.yahoo.com/pz/030527/40752.html

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