FCC reviews government shutdown of wireless networks

The Federal Communications Commission will review the intentional shutdown of wireless networks by government authorities, after transit officials in the San Francisco Bay Area shut down cell phone networks amid protests.

The FCC said it would take comments from the public on the practice, saying there hasn’t been enough discussion around the debate over how public safety concerns are balanced with free speech rights. “Any intentional interruption of wireless service, no matter how brief or localized, raises significant concerns and implicates substantial legal and policy questions,” the FCC said in its notice. “We are concerned that there has been insufficient discussion, analysis, and consideration of the questions raised by intentional interruptions of wireless service by government authorities.”

FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski said: “Our democracy, our society, and our safety all require communications networks that are available and open. Any interruption of wireless services raises serious legal and policy issues, and must meet a very high bar. The FCC, as the agency with oversight of our communications networks, is committed to preserving their availability and openness, and to harnessing communications technologies to protect the public.”

Comments are due April 30, 2012; reply comments are due May 30, 2012 [GN Docket No. 12-52]