Tech company offers spectrum-sharing plan to help ensure public safety

WASHINGTON, July 9, 2024 – A wireless technology company is offering a spectrum-sharing compromise aimed at giving law enforcement new electronic tools to protect the public.

Axon Enterprises, which has asked the Federal Communications Commission to exempt several wireless surveillance devices from operating in a popular Wi-Fi band, has developed a plan to avoid occupying the occupied channels after objections from an industry group and a public policy think tank.

In its latest edition sawing In a July 5 filing with the FCC, Axon said its devices will operate on four channels, prioritizing the less-congested outer channels and leaving the busy middle channels unused to protect Wi-Fi devices.

Axon said it will work with law enforcement to ensure that the two congested center channels are used less. The battery-powered devices will have a handheld wireless controller that will provide an on-screen prompt to not use the congested center channels. The center channels will remain available to law enforcement, however.

“Law enforcement will use Axon devices only occasionally and for short periods of time, but they will be a critical tool that will help first responders save lives,” Axon said.

The exemption requested by Axon would cover three types of wireless devices intended for use by law enforcement in hazardous situations: a drone, a robot and a stick-mounted camera.

The Internet & Television Association (NCTA) wrote to the FCC in March and April, urging the agency to deny Axon’s initial request for the spectrum due to concerns about potential interference with Wi-Fi signals.

The NCTA stated in its sawing that Axon wireless devices will operate on the same frequencies as popular Wi-Fi bands, but at 1,000 times more power than the FCC typically allows.

Similarly, New America expressed NCTA’s concerns in letter written by Wireless Future Director Michael Calabrese.

“Axon’s proposed… surveillance technology would unnecessarily disrupt public use of the U-NII-3 band, which remains the most congested Wi-Fi band,” Calabrese said.