The inability to win US government approval isn’t exactly an unfamiliar issue for Huawei, which by now must be conditioned not to expect a nod from major US telecom companies. But now, The Daily Beast reports that the U.S. Commerce Department has made it very clear that the Chinese company won’t have a role in building the country’s new dedicated first responder wireless network. A spokesman wasn’t shy about the reason, either, explaining that Huawei “will not be taking part in the building of America’s interoperable wireless emergency network for first responders due to U.S. government national security concerns.” And what about those national security concerns? Well, Huawei president Ren Zhengfei’s former role as a People’s Liberation Army technologist may have something to do with it, considering it wouldn’t be unreasonable to suspect that he still has some fairly close ties to Chinese government officials. We haven’t heard a peep from the feds regarding Huawei’s invitation for US officials to investigate the company earlier this year, but it’s safe to assume that the investigation either didn’t go very well, or more likely that it hasn’t happened at all. We imagine that whole corporate espionage debacle probably didn’t help the company, either.

Huawei blocked from first responder network contract, US cites ‘national security concerns’ originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 14 Oct 2011 11:42:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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If you’ve been following the drama over LightSquared’s application to build a wholesale integrated broadband / satellite network, it’s time to put away the tissue box and toss out the bonbons. That’s right, the FCC finally approved the company’s conditional waiver for an ancillary terrestrial component integrated service rule. In other words, the entity gave LightSquared the green light to offer terrestrial-only phones, in addition to satellite service, as long as interference problems are addressed before the company starts building its network. Just two weeks ago, it looked like the FCC might strike down the proposal on a recommendation from the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA), which warned of potential interference on the SMS network with the likes of Department of Defense Communications. LightSquared remained silent during deliberation, but following the FCC’s decision, both parties gave a thumbs up to the outcome. Honestly, we could have done with a more heated back and forth, but we’ll leave that to the professionals. What time is Bridalplasty on again?

Continue reading FCC grants LightSquared terrestrial-only waiver, puts an end to LTE drama

FCC grants LightSquared terrestrial-only waiver, puts an end to LTE drama originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 28 Jan 2011 10:08:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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