Regulators are poised to send the crackling and bulky analog cell phone to the scrap heap next February, denying a last-ditch appeal from a business group.
The shutdown of analog wireless networks Feb. 18 will mean lost service or disruptions for 500,000 GM car owners with OnStar emergency wireless service, up to 1 million alarm customers and a few million diehards who refuse to trade in their analog phones.
Federal Communications Commission Chairman Kevin Martin is recommending the agency deny a petition by the alarm industry to delay the shutdown two years, FCC officials say. The industry says providers need more time to convert analog customers to digital. Most commissioners are likely to support Martin, officials say, noting alarm firms have had five years to upgrade subscriber equipment. They requested anonymity because commissioners have not voted on the matter.
In 2002, the FCC permitted cell phone carriers to turn off their analog networks by 2008. AT&T and Verizon, the only two national carriers with analog systems, say less than 1 percent of their combined subscriber bases, or about 1 million people, still use analog handsets.
Wireless carriers say it would cost several hundred million dollars to maintain the systems two more years, and the airwaves can be better used to improve digital coverage.
Upset Customers
Tell that to subscribers of OnStar, a General Motors subsidiary. Of its 4.5 million subscribers with GM cars, 3 million have digital equipment and 1 million have analog gear that can be upgraded for just $15 after an OnStar subsidy, says Bill Ball, OnStar’s vice president of public policy. About 500,000 OnStar customers have analog systems that can’t be converted due to their cars’ electrical designs, says Bill Ball, OnStar’s public policy chief. Most are in 2002 or earlier GM models. OnStar features include emergency services, remote door unlocking and vehicle diagnostics.
The company is offering a second free year of service to affected customers who buy an OnStar-equipped car. But that’s little solace to Bob De Vries of Queens, N.Y., whose 2005 Buick Park Avenue will lose service Dec. 31.
“A safety feature is supposed to be good for the life of the car,” says De Vries, 68.
A Pennsylvania couple are seeking class-action status for their lawsuit against GM.
Others affected:
• Alarm customers. A million homes and businesses have analog wireless alarm systems. Some 135,000 are primary security systems, while the rest are back-ups for landline-based alarms, says Phillip McVey, head of business operations for ADT, the No. 1 provider. McVey says ADT is switching over customers, but digital gear wasn’t available until several months ago. He says a “significant portion” of customers could lose service Feb. 18.
• Rural areas. Analog cell phone systems are more vital there, as they can cover remote reaches. “There’s still a lot of places where it’s analog or nothing,” says Tony Clark of the North Dakota Public Service Commission.
• The hearing-impaired. Digital phones create a buzz in hearing aids. FCC-mandated noise-free models are being phased in.