A top official at the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) told a Republican congressman that the agency is still considering ways to save LightSquared’s plan for a high-speed wireless network.
The company invested billions of dollars in plans for a nationwide 4G network, but the FCC moved to block the network earlier this year over concerns it would interfere with GPS devices.
In a letter sent last month that was obtained by The Hill, Mindel De La Torre, the chief of the FCC’s International Bureau, told Rep. John Duncan (R-Tenn.) the agency is “continuing to consider all options for addressing this [interference] issue.”
LightSquared filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy on Monday due to the regulatory obstacles facing their business. Company officials said the move would help fend off creditors as it tries to find a solution for its network.
LightSquared and others have suggested that the FCC should move the company to a new band of radio frequency spectrum farther away from the GPS band. In the letter, De La Torre said no other spectrum bands are “immediately apparent as suitable alternatives” and that such a move would be a departure from the FCC’s standard procedures.
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