FCC proposes 911 fines for mobile carriers

[ssassy01d]

Grant Gross Thu Aug 30, 5:57 PM ET



San Francisco (IDGNS) - The U.S. Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has proposed fines totaling $2.8 million to three wireless carriers for failing to meet coverage requirements for an emergency dialing service called E911, the agency said Thursday.
The FCC levied the fines against Sprint Nextel, Alltel, and U.S. Cellular for failing to meet a Dec. 31, 2005, deadline for having 95 percent of their networks capable of using enhanced 911, an emergency dialing service that gives dispatchers the location of the call.
FCC Chairman Kevin Martin said public safety is a top priority at the agency.
"I recognize that the public expects us to get these issues right," he said in a statement. "Alltel, Sprint Nextel, and U.S. Cellular failed to meet this critical deadline by a significant margin, despite the clear requirements of the Commission and the needs of their consumers."
Sprint Nextel would pay a fine of just over $1.3 million under the FCC's proposal, which the carriers can appeal. Alltel's fine would be $1 million, and U.S. Cellular's would be $500,000, an FCC spokesman said.
As of the December 2005 deadline, 81 percent of Sprint's network had E911 service capabilities, while 74 percent of Nextel's network did, according to the FCC. The two companies merged in 2005. About 84 percent of Alltel's customers had E911 service, and about 89 percent of U.S. Cellular's customers did.
Alltel and U.S. Cellular have since reached the 95 percent threshold, but Sprint Nextel has not, the FCC said. As of December 2005, 15 million Sprint Nextel customers did not have E911 service, the agency said.
Martin called the fines "significant and appropriate."
"On the wireless side, Americans increasingly expect that dialing 911 also means first responders can pinpoint a caller’s location, even when the caller is incapacitated or does not know where he or she is," he added. "Our actions today underscore the critical importance that 911 services play in the lives of the public."

Source: Yahoo! News


FCC proposes 911 fines for mobile carriers - Yahoo! News (http://news.yahoo.com/s/infoworld/20070830/tc_infoworld/91463)

[Ellen]

I think it's long over due that the FCC finally step up and take action against some of the carriers who remain non compliant in regards to the E911 issue. All the carriers had plenty of time to get with the program on this.

[ssassy01d]

So do I!!! My God it's a safety issue for crying out loud!! You'd think they'd take the safety of their customers and put it on top priority!

[AndrewD]

T-mobile has the E911 fee, look at your bill it's a 50 cent charge per line.

[Mystictrust]

Am I the only one who caught that the deadline was December 2005? Does the FCC actually take nearly two years to punish?

Well, knowing that, if your carrier doesn't have the money just ignore the FCC and keep on chugging until you have enough to pay $1,000,000 or less and some extra for yourself.

I don't think those carriers wanted to charge their customers an extra E911 fee, no matter how little it might be, and perhaps tried to do it without the fee but couldn't. Nevertheless, this is very important and I'm glad the FCC is stepping up to [finally] punish something that definitely should not be looked over. Personally, I hope right after they get their money they say to that carrier, "So.... sup? I was, uh, just wondering if you had by chance upgraded 95% of your networks to E911. If you have I'll be your best friend for ever!!"

[SJSMR2]

This is an important saftey issue.

I had to call 911 from my Nextel phone back in early 2005 in a rural area. It was not clear to the 911 operator what branch of the police force was closest to me becasue I guess they could not tringulate my position. There was the choice of the CHP, Local PD and County Sheriff. The operator even asked me at one point if it was possible for me to call 911 again with a landline. They ended up just sending County Sheriff.

After the ordeal was over the operator told me that next time I dialed 911 I should do it from a landline. I hope this is not the case anymore. With this FCC "crackdown".

The incident was a drug issue on the property where I worked. Someone that was strung out on something was running at cars going up and down the street yelling and screaming at them.