Churches using 700Mhz wireless equipment appear to be in trouble on June 22nd when the FCC Billion-dollars sale becomes effective.

As the Federal Communications Commission seeks out more broadband space, the agency is being asked to consider possibly the largest group that would be affected by the move – that is, churches.

Churches across the country that use wireless devices have already been affected by FCC’s 2008 decision to auction off rights to the 700 MHz band. But their new push for even more spectrum is sure to create more losses and interferences.

“I assure you the number one use of wireless systems in this country is churches,” Reed Hall, director of Audio & Technical Production at Lakewood Church in Houston, told The Christian Post. “Ninety percent of them have at least one wireless system. You compare that to Broadway, which is like a three-block area.”

The FCC unveiled a national broadband plan on Tuesday as part of its effort to make high-speed Internet service faster and available to all U.S. residents. Some of the proposals include freeing up 500 MHz of spectrum for wireless broadband services, use of currently unused or underused spectrum, and taking advantage of the “white space” in the television broadcasting spectrum.

The plan comes just as the FCC is enforcing its new rule that requires anyone using a wireless microphone that operates in the 700 MHz band – including both licensed users (under Part 74) and unlicensed users – to stop operating the device no later than June 12. The band was sold to companies like Verizon and AT&T for billions of dollars.

Read More: http://www.christianpost.com/article/20100317/churches-suffer-losses-under-new-fcc-rule/index.html