FCC on LightSquared: We Will Protect GPS
Today (June 9, 2011), FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski held a press conference stating that the FCC would protect GPS services, but that it was continuing to examine ways the two services could coexist. As the article in Broadcast and Cable stated, “There continued to be an interference problem, they said, particularly in the upper portion of the band closest to GPS. While LightSquared’s proposal anticipates eventually using that spectrum as well, one FCC official said he did not see that happening anytime soon, and that the commission was focusing on the lower-band proposal.” As also stated in the article, this is essentially a “proceed at your own risk” statement. In other words, LightSquared’s business plan depends on rapid buildout of their network to derive free cash flow as soon as possible, but the FCC has essentially halted this until more testing can be completed for one-half of the spectrum for which LightSquared requested licensing and upon which they defined their business plan. If I were an investor, this would dramatically increase my risk assessment for the LightSquared venture.