Skip to main content

Don’t miss the Special Session on Wi-Fi Expansion and the Future of Connected Vehicles!

As part of an effort by policymakers to make better use of the nation’s airwaves, Congress last year directed the National Telecommunications & Information Administration (NTIA) to examine the potential for spectrum sharing in the 5.4 GHz and 5.9 GHz bands, the latter of which was set aside by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) in 1999 for the development of connected vehicle technology. On January 25, the NTIA issued an initial report expressing concern about the potential interference risks asso
April 16, 2013 Read time: 2 mins
Paul Feenstra will moderate a key session that will explore the feasibility of spectrum sharing in the 5.9 GHz band.
As part of an effort by policymakers to make better use of the nation’s airwaves, Congress last year directed the National Telecommunications & Information Administration (NTIA) to examine the potential for spectrum sharing in the 5.4 GHz and 5.9 GHz bands, the latter of which was set aside by the 2115 Federal Communications Commission (FCC) in 1999 for the development of connected vehicle technology.

On January 25, the NTIA issued an initial report expressing concern about the potential interference risks associated with allowing a substantial number of new, unlicensed devices to operate in the 5.9 GHz band, and proposing a technical evaluation process to determine whether and how the multiple risk factors could be mitigated.

On April 10, the FCC proceeded to publish a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking seeking to open up the 5.4 and 5.9 GHz bands to unlicensed devices. ITS America and other connected vehicle stakeholders will be submitting comments to the FCC raising their concerns with the proposal (which have been expressed previously in an ITS America-led coalition letter to the FCC Chairman).

Attendees to the ITS America Annual Meeting & Exposition who would like to learn more are encouraged to attend a special session from 8:00 – 9:15am on Wednesday, April 24 in Ryman Studio O of the Gaylord Opryland Hotel and Convention Center titled “Wi-Fi Expansion and the Future of Connected Vehicle”.

The session will explore the feasibility of spectrum sharing in the 5.9 GHz band, focusing on the risk factors, potential benefits, and possible technical solutions; as well as next steps for working with the FCC, NTIA, US DOT and stakeholder community to figure out if there is a win-win scenario that would protect the connected vehicle program while allowing for expanded Wi-Fi services. The session, moderated by ITS America’s Paul Feenstra, Senior Vice President for Government and External Affairs, will feature presentations by Charles Glass of the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) who will discuss the initial results of NTIA’s study on the potential for spectrum sharing in the 5.9 GHz band; Tom Schaffnit, President of the VII Consortium; Mary Brown, Director of Government Affairs at Cisco; and John Maddox, Director of Collaborative Program Strategies at the University of Michigan Transportation Research Institute (UMTRI) and Texas A&M Transportation Institute (TTI).

Related Content

  • May 30, 2014
    The Asia-Pacific poses a multitude of ITS challenges
    The Asia-Pacific ITS Forum and Exhibition in Auckland, New Zealand, provided a focus for the region’s ITS Associations. Mary Bell reports. In late April, ITS New Zealand hosted the 13th Asia-Pacific ITS Forum and Exhibition in Auckland. Around 350 delegates from 24 nations gathered to share and advance ITS applications on both strategic and technical levels and to discuss the differing and various challenges faced in the region.
  • November 4, 2014
    Cryptovision looks at Africa and e-Government
    Innovations in mobile ID technologies will soon enable secure identification and authentication, as well as instant access to critical information. And it is governments in less mature markets which will probably be the first to adopt these new technologies. This is because mobile phone use is very high in developing nations and government-to-citizen ID programmes have been moving towards electronic IDs.
  • September 26, 2012
    Turkish Ministry of Transport joins Ertico - ITS Europe
    Joining 100 partners ranging from mobile network operators, public authorities, research institutions, services providers, suppliers, traffic and transport industry, user groups and vehicle manufacturers, the Turkish Ministry of Transport, Maritime Affairs and Communications has joined the Ertico – ITS Europe Partnership, Europe’s leading organisation supporting R&D and deployment of Intelligent Transport Systems and Services (ITS). Turkey has made a large investment in its transport infrastructure, includi
  • September 8, 2014
    Xerox a founding partner in connected vehicle initiative
    Xerox joins a select group of companies, including Econolite, Iteris, Delphi, Denso, Bosch, Honda, Nissan, Toyota and General Motors, which will be the founding partners in the University of Michigan’s Mobility Transformation Center (MTC). Spanning such sectors as auto manufacturing, suppliers, ITS, insurance, telecommunications, data management, and mobility services, the MTC’s Leadership Circle will join with government and academic partners to lay the foundations for a commercially viable system of co