WASHINGTON, D.C. — At the end of the first quarter of 2025, the FCC launched an inquiry to explore commercial technologies that would complement the Global Positioning System (GPS). Today, WT Docket No. 25-110 remains open. This prompted the Wireless Infrastructure Association to chime in to the Commission, encouraging it to “expeditiously issue” a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking that would promote the development of “PNT” tech and products.
Nearly 18 months after the FCC first opened the docket exploring the promotion and development of positioning, navigation, and timing technologies and solutions, “the need for resilient PNT is no longer theoretical,” the WIA says.
That’s why “a more resilient, layered PNT ecosystem would reduce that risk and strengthen the communications foundations on which consumers, businesses, first responders, and government agencies increasingly rely.”
The NAB believes it has one, using the technology offered in the ATSC 3.0 broadcast TV signal to fuel its Broadcast Positioning System (BPS).
That’s just one of the options the FCC is considering as a GPS alternative. And, the WIA says it supports the Commission’s “continued pursuit of a fact-based, engineering-driven NPRM that proposes specific actions the Commission can take to incentivize and support
industry efforts to develop complementary PNT technologies and solutions for civil use that may be used in conjunction with GPS to form a resilient and secure PNT system of systems.”
When such a notice of proposed rulemaking will arrive is now generating discussion, given the lengthy time since the launch of the Commission docket on the matter.
The WIA believes the time is now to act.
“The Commission need not pre-determine the answer to every question at the outset,” the WIA’s Sr. VP of Government Affairs and Chief Strategy Officer Michael Saperstein states in an ex parte filing. “Rather, an NPRM would provide the appropriate procedural vehicle to test assumptions, address incumbent-user concerns, and determine what rule changes or authorizations may be necessary to enable
commercially viable GPS complements and backups.”
The WIA therefore urges the Commission “to build on the record developed in this docket and move forward with an NPRM. Continued Commission leadership will help ensure that the United States does not wait for a GPS disruption to expose avoidable vulnerabilities, but instead takes practical, forward-looking steps to promote a more resilient PNT ecosystem.”
