Falcone's Plan B: Swapping Airwaves

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LightSquared may seek to exchange its wireless airwave licenses for similar ones operated by the Department of Defense in a last-ditch effort to revive its mobile broadband service, according to people familiar with the company's plans. LightSquared had been criticized by the Defense Department, legislators and makers of farm equipment and Global Positioning System devices, who say its network signal operates too close to those used for GPS and could interfere. In comparison, the Defense Department airwaves -- used primarily for aircraft testing -- operate on a frequency farther away from GPS signals making it less likely to cause any jamming. Such an airwaves swap would be difficult -- it's not clear the Defense Department would be interested in such an exchange and LightSquared would need to raise additional funds.


Falcone's Plan B: Swapping Airwaves