On January 15, 2010 the FCC announced the ban on the sale, manufacture and marketing of Wireless Microphones that operate in the 700 MHz frequency band. Wireless Microphone Ban The ban applies immediately to the sale of wireless microphones in this frequency band, but continued use of the microphones is allowed until June 12, 2010 if the microphones are not causing harmful interference to licensees operating in the band. There is no ban on wired microphones operating in this frequency band.
Who makes out because of the order? The telecom industry, which spent about 19 billion buying licenses for 4G networks. Also, wireless microphone manufacturers who get to sell a whole lot of new microphones to customers who have to replace their 700 MHz wireless microphones. Who gets screwed? Customers who recently bought a wireless microphone they can no longer use. The FCC gave notice of the possibility of the pending action back in late 2008, but manufacturers were aware of the probability of the action earlier when the licenses were sold to the cell service providers. Customers who bought a system in late 2008 or in 2009 are screwed because industry analysts estimate the expected life of the systems at 3 years. Considering that there are no actual cases of interference reported, it seems like the FCC could have allowed a longer transition period for customers to obtain replacement systems.
Who makes out because of the order? The telecom industry, which spent about 19 billion buying licenses for 4G networks. Also, wireless microphone manufacturers who get to sell a whole lot of new microphones to customers who have to replace their 700 MHz wireless microphones. Who gets screwed? Customers who recently bought a wireless microphone they can no longer use. The FCC gave notice of the possibility of the pending action back in late 2008, but manufacturers were aware of the probability of the action earlier when the licenses were sold to the cell service providers. Customers who bought a system in late 2008 or in 2009 are screwed because industry analysts estimate the expected life of the systems at 3 years. Considering that there are no actual cases of interference reported, it seems like the FCC could have allowed a longer transition period for customers to obtain replacement systems.
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