Subject: [NEXTEL-1] Utility Cuts Short BPL Trial that was Target of Amateur Complaints

From: NEXTEL-1
Date: Mon, 28 Jun 2004 21:43:53 -0400

Utility Cuts Short BPL Trial that was Target of Amateur Complaints

NEWINGTON, CT, Jun 28, 2004--Alliant Energy has called an early end to
its broadband over power line (BPL) pilot project in Cedar Rapids, Iowa.
The "evaluation system" went live March 30, and plans were for it to
remain active until August or September. Alliant shut it down June 25.
Ongoing, unresolved HF interference from the system to retired engineer
Jim Spencer, W0SR, and other amateurs prompted the ARRL to file a
complaint to the FCC on Spencer's behalf demanding it be shut down.
Spencer said he was happy with Alliant's decision, and was gracious in
expressing appreciation to the utility for working with him on the
interference issues.

"And thanks also to the ARRL and the
Cedar Rapids BPL Steering Committee
for their knowledge and efforts in making a
truly professional evaluation," he added.

Alliant Energy's BPL Project Leader Dan
Hinz says the ARRL complaint "certainly
was a factor" in the utility's decision to pull
the plug prematurely but "not the overriding
factor." More to the point, he said, was
that Alliant also was able to "accomplish
the majority of its objectives" ahead of
schedule. The primary purpose of the
Cedar Rapids evaluation was to gain an
understanding of BPL technology and what
issues might be involved in a real-world deployment,
Hinz explained, adding that regulatory uncertainty
and other unspecified technical issues also factored
into the choice to end the pilot early.

Hinz said Alliant is "moshing the data" to compile a written evaluation
of the Cedar Rapids pilot, but the company has no plans
at this point to move forward with BPL. Alliant did not partner with a
broadband services provider, and it has no other BPL
test systems in operation. The system used Amperion BPL equipment.

According to Spencer, five fixed Amateur Radio stations within proximity
of the BPL evaluation system and two mobile stations
formally reported BPL interference on HF. "The radio amateurs and
Alliant Energy cooperated by sharing interference
information," he said. "Alliant Energy turned the BPL evaluation system
off twice to allow collection of extensive BPL frequency
and signal level data--with and without BPL." He said Alliant and
Amperion tried various "notching" schemes to rid amateur
frequencies of the BPL interference with only limited success. The
system included both overhead and underground BPL links
to feed 2.4 GHz wireless "hot spots" for end user access.

Hinz said the area's topography presented some challenges, especially
with the system's wireless links. In hindsight, he suggested, Cedar
Rapids might have not have been the best place to test BPL. "I think in
the end, we actually over-challenged ourselves with this specific pilot
location." Despite "substantial progress" in interference mitigation,
Hinz said, Alliant decided at this point that "it wasn't worth the extra
effort" to resolve the thornier technical issues.

As for the broader implications of Alliant's decision, Hinz says he's
always viewed BPL as a "strategic deployment technology," not one a
company could roll out just anywhere and expect to be competitive with
existing broadband services such as cable and DSL.
"At least that's how we were looking at it.," he said. "You have to find
the right areas with the right topography with the right concentration
of certain types of customers," he said. "And from our test standpoint,
we didn't necessarily give perhaps as much merit to some of those
criteria as we should have."

"It's never been in my mind that BPL has to compete with the speeds of
cable today," Hinz added. "It has to compete with the
speeds of cable and the next best thing tomorrow as well, if it's going
to be usable well into the future."

Cedar Rapids already has established broadband providers. Hinz said the
Alliant system was a test-stand operation that never reached the point
of signing up any real customers, and its technology was "fixed in
time." Other companies have gone beyond what Alliant was able to
accomplish in Cedar Rapids, he asserted, and plan to move ahead with
BPL. He hinted that Alliant might want to take another look at BPL once
the FCC has put BPL rules and regulations into place, and the technology
has further evolved.

Spencer and Hinz agree that the BPL situation was resolved without any
rancor. Still outstanding are some chronic power line noise problems
Spencer has experienced. "There's been ongoing dialogue," Hinz said "He
helps keep our lines pretty clear up there."

The ARRL's formal complaint to FCC Enforcement Bureau Chief David H.
Solomon called on the Commission not only to close down Alliant's BPL
field trial system but to fine the utility $10,000 for violating the
Communications Act of 1934 and FCC Part 15 rules. In late May, ARRL
Midwest Division Director Wade Walstrom, W0EJ, also called on Alliant
Energy to shut down its BPL system "without delay" and not resume
operation until "any and all interference issues have been fully
resolved."

The ARRL became involved in Spencer's case after United Power Line
Council President William R. Moroney invited the League in mid-March to
keep his organization in the loop on any cases of BPL interference that
were not being satisfactorily addressed.

For additional information, visit the "Broadband Over Power Line (BPL)
and Amateur Radio" page on the ARRL Web site. To support the League's
efforts in this area, visit the ARRL's secure BPL Web site.
http://www.arrl.org/news/stories/2004/06/28/2/?nc=1

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