House Committee Asks FCC Why U.S. Cell Phones Use Chinese, Russian Satellite Signals
The FCC allows U.S. and European satellites to provide connectivity, but not from China or Russia…
The U.S. House Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party is asking Federal Communication Commission Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel why cell phones and other devices are receiving and processing signals from Chinese and Russian satellites in violation of FCC rules.
Committee Chairman Mike Gallagher, R-Wis., in a letter to Rosenworcel, said: “Current FCC rules permit mobile and other GNSS receivers to receive and process signals from GPS and any foreign GNSS that has been approved through a process the FCC adopted in 2011. To date, only the European Galileo GNSS has been approved. However, we have become aware that U.S. mobile phones and other connected devices are receiving and processing signals from the PRC BeiDou and Russian GLONASS GNSS constellations, in violation of the FCC’s rules.”
Gallagher also wrote that carrier and device manufacturers are using unauthorized signals because the United States is “woefully behind in its deployment and activation of its next generation of GPS satellites.” He said that because Galileo provides a full constellation of advanced GNSS technologies, along with L5 signals from 18 GPS satellites, there is little need for the FCC to waive its own rules to allow unauthorized foreign signals.
In the letter, Gallagher contends that events in Eastern Europe, including significant jamming and spoofing of GNSS signals, “call into question and wisdom of accepting this workaround and suggest it is critical for the FCC to enforce its rules.” He said it is particularly important because of recent Chinese cooperation with Russia in the Ukrainian war.
The heat is on China and other countries as the U.S. government is investigating Chinese connected cars and even TikTok. Gallagher asked whether the FCC required further statutory authorities to address the effect of the unauthorized GNSS signals on national security.
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Comtech Fires CEO Peterman
Citing conduct unrelated to the business, Comtech Telecommunications CMTL 0.00%↑ terminated Ken Peterman as president and CEO and have removed him from its board of directors.
"The Board is committed to upholding the highest standards of ethical and professional conduct," said Mark Quinlan, Comtech board chairman, in a statement.
The surprise firing comes less than two years after Peterman succeeded Michael Porcelain in August 2022. Former CEO Fred Cornberg led the company from 1976 to 2022.
Comtech has appointed John Ratigan, the company’s chief corporate development officer, to be interm CEO while it begins an executive search for a new leader. Comtech plans to report its financial results for the quarter that ended Jan. 31 next week.
Comtech has been a pioneer in next-generation 9-1-1 emergency services, satellite and space communications technologies. An example of this was a $29 million contract last year from Al Yah Satellite Communications Co. [YAHSAT] for communications technologies and location services. The company also offers GNSS reference data feeds and corrections that enable global location-based solutions.
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NextNav To Acquire Additional Lower 900 MHz Band Spectrum Licenses
NextNav NN 0.00%↑ announced it had signed an agreement to acquire spectrum licenses covering an additional 4 MHz in the lower 900 MHz band for as much as $50 million from Telesaurus Holdings and Skybridge Spectrum Foundation. The acquired licenses, which are in the same lower 900 MHz band as the company’s current spectrum, will bring NextNav’s total to 3.5 billion MHz-PoPs of low band spectrum.
The spectrum will paid for through a combination of cash and NextNav common stock, the company said. Approximately $2.5 million will be paid in cash due within 30 days of official approvals, including the Federal Communications Commission, the company said.
“Acquiring these licenses in the same lower 900 MHz band as our current licensed spectrum will provide NextNav with broader capacity to advance and strengthen PNT services in the future,” said NextNav CEO Mariam Sorond, in a statement.
The deal, as well as the recent Iridium IRDM 0.00%↑ purchase of Satelles, was highlighted in a published report saying that the U.S. government was seeking reliable alternatives to GPS.
In other company news, NextNav reported an increase in revenue of $1.2 million for the fourth quarter that ended Dec. 31, 2023. The company reported an operating loss of $19.9 million and a net loss of $16.4 million for the three months.
Other Location News
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Top News:
💰 Hg Said to Kick Off $1 Billion Sale of Telematics Firm Trackunit. “Trackunit, which focuses on the off-highway vehicle market, could be valued at as much as $1 billion in any transaction.”
⚡ NTIA Releases Implementation Plan For National Spectrum Strategy.
🛳 Cosco Shipping Upgrades Fleet Safety with Iridium's Advanced GMDSS System. “Iridium IRDM 0.00%↑ has reported that Cosco Shipping (CSSC), the leading commercial fleet globally with 1,417 vessels, has initiated the integration of Iridium Global Maritime Distress and Safety System (GMDSS) terminals across its ships.”
🙁 Apple Maps Sparks Controversy: Taiwan Labeled as 'Taiwan Province' in China. “Apple Maps aligns with Beijing's 'One China' policy in its Chinese version, labeling Taiwan as 'Taiwan Province'. This move has ignited significant controversy and discussion on the intersection of technology and geopolitics.”
💲 Joyride Raises $5.2 Million Led by Yamaha Motors to Advance Next-Gen Connected Mobility.
🛰 Sateliot Readies Commercial Service for Take Off. “Space-based IoT connectivity player Sateliot declared itself on the brink of launching commercial operations worth a potential €187 million in annual revenue, a move which could challenge mobile operator business models.”
Maps:
😕 Android Auto 2022 Issue Returns to Make Using Google Maps and Waze Dangerous. “A glitch that first appeared in 2022 has returned to haunt Android Auto users again, blocking Google Maps and Waze from switching to dark mode at night.”
👍 12 Map Happenings that Rocked our World: Part 8. James Killick’s excellent overview of how determining location evolved.
🤔 The Little Things: How This Google Maps Rival Makes Navigation Convenient for Trucks. Google avoids truck navigation? “Companies like Sygic have launched professional navigation software specifically aimed at large vehicles such as trucks and caravans, providing customers with advanced guidance based on vehicle dimensions and cargo size.”
📌 Google Maps Starts Showing Social Media Profiles From Your Favorite Bars and Restaurants. “Google Business Profiles now allow integration with social media accounts for additional customer engagement and marketing opportunities.”
😯 Please Don't Use Google Maps and Waze at Least This Time, Traffic Authority Tells Drivers. “National Highways, the traffic company in charge of operating and maintaining motorways in the United Kingdom, issued a public recommendation for drivers, telling them to stick with official diversion routes.”
✔ Mapping the Path Forward: A Conversation with Overture’s Technical Director Amy Rose.
👏 Mapbox Finland Celebrates and Reflects on Its Sixth Anniversary.
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Connected and Autonomous Vehicles:
💰 Applied Intuition Lands $6B Valuation for AI-Powered Autonomous Vehicle Software. “The eye-popping funding round is the latest example of investor fervor for AI.”
🚘 NHTSA in Talks With GM Over Fleet of Self-Driving Cars With No Steering Wheels. “Acting NHTSA Administrator James Owens said his agency aims to make a decision soon on GM's January 2018 petition as well as a request by Softbank Corp.-backed driverless delivery startup Nuro to deploy a limited number of low-speed, highly automated delivery vehicles without human occupants.”
🤨 Things Just Went From Bad to Worse for General Motors and Self-Driving Start-Up Cruise. Here's Why I Think Tesla Is the Big Winner. “Despite Cruise's $1.3 billion of cash on the balance sheet, its current burn rate doesn't bode much confidence. Frankly, I see General Motors GM 0.00%↑ needing to inject far more capital into Cruise sooner rather than later.”
😒 China Has The U.S. Beat On Autonomous Driving. “The reasons, it seems, boil down to a single feature that American passenger cars have yet to implement: Lidar.”
🚌 Space-Enabled Connectivity Steers Self-Driving Cars. In one of the longest-running trials of a self-driving vehicle, collecting data over 13 000 km of autonomous travel, Darwin Innovation Group has been testing a novel driverless shuttle bus at Harwell Science and Innovation Campus, in Oxford, UK, which is home to ESA’s European Centre for Space Applications and Telecommunications (ECSAT).
Drones:
🛩 Medical Drone Delivery Service Receives UK Space Agency Backing. “Apian, which was founded by NHS staff as part of the NHS Clinical Entrepreneur Program, aims to establish a network of secure air corridors for electric drones to navigate via GPS.”
Financial:
✔ IoT Asset Tracking Provider Samsara Reports Big Jump in Revenue, and Its Stock Jumps Too.
💰 Mapon Secures €3M Bond Issuance for Fleet Management Solutions. “Mapon's platform includes GPS tracking, fuel control, route planning, temperature monitoring, security, tachograph data management, digital vehicle inspections, asset tracking, IoT, video telematics and other solutions.”
📈 PowerFleet Reports Q4 Loss, Tops Revenue Estimates.
Location Industry Briefs
Send your news releases to kdennehy@driverlessreport.com. Go to www.locationbusinessnews.com for more news and an archive of stories.
SMART Grants Program Awards Announced
U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg announced more than $50 million in grant awards for 34 technology demonstration projects across the country through the Strengthening Mobility and Revolutionizing Transportation (SMART) Grants Program. This is the second year of SMART grant awards, for which the federal agency received 321 eligible grant applications, the agency said. Some awardees include such projects covering drone delivery, connected and autonomous vehicles and other sensor technology. The full list of awards can be viewed here.
Contact: U.S. DoT, smart@dot.gov, www.transportation.gov/grants/smart.
Quectel Launches Module at CAEV Event
Quectel Wireless Solutions is set to unveil the AW200Z multi-mode smart LTE module equipped with Bluetooth and Wi-Fi functionalities at the upcoming Connected Auto & Electric Vehicles (CAEV) India event. AW200Z features Qualcomm's QCOM 0.00%↑ 64-bit quad-core Cortex-A53 processors, coupled with an integrated Adreno 702 GPU.
The module, marketed to industrial and consumer sectors, features a multi-constellation GNSS receiver. The module features Bike-to-Cloud connectivity, seamless integration with Vehicle Hardware Abstraction Layer (HAL), and proactive service provision, the company said.
Contact: Quectel, media@quectel.com, www.quectel.com.
Zonar Launches MyView in Canada
Zonar has launched Zonar MyView in Canada. MyView provides parents and caregivers with real-time location updates and details about school buses, the company said. MyView's GPS tracking integration provides updates to bus assignments and pickup times with a ping rate every 10 seconds, the company said.
Contact: Larry Meyers, for Zonar, (310) 721-9587, zonarpr@rhstrategic.com, www.zonarsystems.com.
Railpulse and Nexxiot Announce Agreement To Accelerate Railcar Telematics Adoption
RailPulse has partnered with telematics rail solution provider Nexxiot. The deal allows the company to be a non-exclusive reseller of Nexxiot's hardware devices, software, and services to customers within North America.
Stakeholders who own, lease, or operate railcars in North America can purchase Nexxiot technology through RailPulse. The company is part of a coalition is dedicated to transforming the rail industry through accelerating the adoption of GPS and other telematics technologies.
Contact: Nexxiot, www.nexxiot.com.
Trimble Joins the Alliance for OpenUSD
Trimble TRMB 0.00%↑ has announced it has joined AOUSD, which seeks to standardize the 3D ecosystem by advancing the capabilities of OpenUSD (Universal Scene Description). By promoting greater interoperability of 3D tools and data, AOUSD will enable designers and engineers to describe, compose, share, and simulate large-scale 3D projects and to build a range of collaborative 3D-driven products and services, the company said. Trimble, among other contributions, looks to provide input on digital twins and industrial digitalization applications in urban planning, construction, transportation, robotics and IoT.
Contact: Trimble, www.trimble.com.
Digital Ally Receives The Parking Spot Contract
Digital Ally DGLY 0.00%↑ has received an order for 405 EVO Fleets from The Parking Spot airport parking company. EVO Fleet offers GPS tracking and artificial intelligence, providing immediate driver-assist feedback by recognizing pedestrians, distracted or drowsy driving, and lane drifting, the company said.
Contact: Brody Green, Digital Ally, (913) 814-7774, info@digitalallyinc.com, www.digitalallyinc.com.
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Zebra Technologies Named a Leader in 2024 Gartner Magic Quadrant for Indoor Location Services
Zebra Technologies ZBRA 0.00%↑ was named a “Leader” by Gartner in its Magic Quadrant for Indoor Location Services. Zebra, which was recongnized for its “completeness of vision” and “ability to execute,” uses Wi-Fi, cellular data, GPS, Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE), Ultra-Wideband (UWB), Visible Light Communications (VLC) and other technology for its location services, the company said.
Contact: Michael Gilhooly, Zebra Technologies, (708) 814-5281, michael.gilhooly@zebra.com.
Tetra Tech Purchases Teledyne’s CZMIL SuperNova
Teledyne Geospatial said that Tetra Tech has purchased its Optech CZMIL SuperNova Topobathymetric lidar system and have successfully completed a project for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). The agency has an ongoing effort to update all their bathymetric maps in the Great Lakes region, the company said.
Tetra Tech operated Optech CZMIL SuperNova system for its depth penetration and high-density mapping capability, the company said. The CZMIL SuperNova enabled mapping of the lakebed to a maximum depth of 31 meters.
Contact: Jennifer Parham, Teledyne, Jennifer.Parham@teledyne.com, www.teledyneimaging.com/geospatial.
CenTrack Launches BLE Multi-Mode Platform
CenTrak has launched a Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) Multi-Mode Platform. The real-time location system (RTLS) solution offers location data capabilities and a cost-effective deployment model, the company said. By using existing BLE-enabled hospital networks and infrastructure, this integration technology accelerates the adoption of location-based services, the company said.
Contact: Heather Fretz, for CenTrak, hfretz@bnoinc.com, www.centrak.com.
MetOcean Telematics Partners With Saildrone
MetOcean Telematics’ partnership with Saildrone combines satellite-based IoT solutions with uncrewed surface vehicles. MetOcean, which provides Iridium services, ensures that oceanographic data is collected and transmitted in real-time, the company said.
Saildrone’s uncrewed surface vehicles deliver climate models, refines weather predictions, monitors marine mammals and maps ocean depth with sonar. The companies also integrate Thales VesseLINK for maritime communications.
Contact: MetOcean Telematics, www.metocean.com
Everything Blockchain Gains Geofencing Patent
Everything Blockchain has been granted approval for its multi-factor geofencing system for secure encryption and decryption patent by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. EBI’s EB Control geofencing technology leverages geolocation data and validating it to ensure that decryption occurs only within specified geographic bounds, the company said.
Contact: Tori Odom, for Everything Blockchain, (443) 752-5466, todom@golaunchtech.com, www.ebcontrol.io.
Wiliot IoT Platform Gains Big 4, Gartner Recognition,
Wiliot said its IoT Visibility Platform has achieved System and Organization Controls (SOC) 1 Type II and SOC 2 Type II reports, issued by independent auditors from a “leading big 4 firm.” In other company news, Wiliot was recognized by Gartner as a “Visionary” in the Gartner Magic Quadrant for Indoor Location Services. This is the first time that Wiliot has been recognized in a Gartner Magic Quadrant.
Contact: Daniel Griffin, for Wiliot, (845) 536-2200, 373936@email4pr.com, www.wiliot.com.
Midmark RTLS Rebrands Product
Midmark RTLS has rebranded its system for real-time locating to CareFlow RTLS. Through multiple locating technologies, CareFlow RTLS allows healthcare professionals to improve operations and focus, the company said. More than 1,100 hospitals, clinics and oncology centers have used Midmark RTLS.
Contact: Midmark, midmark.com.
People
Loren Hillberg has joined Telenav as chief administrative officer.
Torc Robotics has appointed Richard Kannan as CFO. The company also named
Bhuvana Ramachandran as vice president of engineering.
Jobs
Enterprise Sales Director. Pointr.
General Corporate Counsel. Telenav.
Federal Sales Senior Account Executive. INRIX.
Customer Support Manager. Bridgestone Mobility Solutions.
Careers. GMV.
USG Project Manager. Trustpoint.
Field Applications Engineer. Point One Navigation.
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