ITS America Urges Opposition to Wi-Fi Innovation Act

ITS America warned Congress against the Wi-Fi Innovation Act, introduced Tuesday and compelling the FCC to investigate unlicensed spectrum use in the upper 5 GHz band (see 1502100041). “Experts from the automotive, Wi-Fi and intelligent transportation systems (ITS) industries are working together to explore whether a spectrum sharing technology can be developed to allow Wi-Fi devices to operate in the same 5.9 GHz band set aside by the FCC for ITS safety systems without delaying time-critical communications needed to prevent crashes,” interim President Thomas Kern said in a statement. “This collaborative process should continue without Congressionally-imposed deadlines, restrictive parameters or political pressure that creates regulatory uncertainty and could delay bringing these life-saving crash prevention technologies to consumers." Kern and other auto industry stakeholders, including AAA and the Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers, sent Hill Commerce Committee leaders a letter slamming the legislation’s “arbitrary deadlines and restrictive parameters.” The groups asked committee leadership to oppose the bill.