Technologie i telekomunikacja · 15.11.2004

Maritime Communications

In this document, the Commission initiates a rulemaking proceeding to identify the electromagnetic spectrum that should be used for maritime Automatic Identification Systems (AIS) in the United States and its territorial waters. AIS is an important tool for enhancing maritime safety and homeland security, and the Commission is concerned that recent developments may have created uncertainty in the maritime community regarding the very high frequency (VHF) channels to be used for AIS, and that this in turn could impede efforts to expedite the broad deployment of AIS. The Commission has received conflicting petitions and other pleadings on this subject from the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA), which is representing the interests of the Federal Government, including the United States Coast Guard (USCG or Coast Guard) and the Department of Transportation (including the Saint Lawrence Seaway Development Corporation) in this matter, and from MariTEL, Inc. (MariTEL), the licensee of all nine of the maritime VHF Public Coast (VPC) station service areas. Based on these petitions and pleadings, as well as responsive comments from other stakeholders in the mar