Today the FCC will be considering issuing a proposal that seeks comment on the Commission’s rules regarding the use of mobile wireless services onboard aircraft. In my view, the proposal to seek public comment should be adopted.
As
reported in today's Washington Post, the announcement by the FCC's new Chairman a
couple of weeks ago that the agency would issue the notice seeking comment on a
rule change that might lead to in-flight cellphone use has drawn a lot of public
attention, both positive and negative. This is not surprising given the strong
feelings of consumers concerning the use of cellphones in flight. Some consumers
reacted positively to the prospect of allowing in-flight calls and wireless
services, while others criticized the idea.
Those
who interpreted the FCC’s announcement as permitting passengers to make voice
calls in-flight should relax. The so-called Notice of Proposed Rulemaking will
not itself allow in-flight calls. The NPRM will merely seek public comment on
proposed revisions to the Commission's rules to begin the process of considering
whether any changes in the on-board wireless device use policies are warranted.
The NPRM likely will also announce the Commission’s tentative decision to give
airlines discretion to determine whether and how to provide and manage on-board
wireless services, given the FCC's determination that “there is no technical
reason” to prohibit on-board use of mobile devices.
If it is
true, and I await public comment on the issue, that there is no technical
reason from a spectrum management or spectrum interference point of view for
the FCC to prohibit on-board wireless use, then, from my free market-oriented
perspective, giving airlines discretion to determine policies governing in-flight
wireless services is an appropriate way to approach the issue. The FCC has technical
expertise regarding resolving concerns about spectrum interference issues, and
it is appropriate for the agency to address those concerns utilizing its
expertise. But, at the same time, absent any concerns that on-board wireless
use poses spectrum interference issues that compromise airline safety, I don't
see it as the FCC's role to dictate how the airlines run their operations with
respect to passenger conduct.
If the
FAA believes that the in-flight use of cellphones may compromise the safety of
airline operations because cellphone use is likely to cause disruptions due to
unruly passenger fights, the FAA may well have a role to play. Perhaps other
federal agencies may have a role to play as well. And, most importantly, as I
understand it, nothing in the FCC's proposed rule would require airlines to
allow in-flight cellphone use. That decision would be left to the airlines
themselves based on their own perceptions concerning the demands of consumers
in the air travel marketplace.
When the
FCC's new Chairman, Tom Wheeler, announced a few weeks ago that the FCC would
be considering this change, he said: "I do not want the person in the seat
next to me yapping…But we are not the Federal Courtesy Commission." I
agree with Mr. Wheeler on both counts.
At the
end of the day, I personally hope the airlines don't allow in-flight cellphone
use, or at least certainly not in an unrestricted way that is likely to cause
widespread passenger irritation. But, at the same time, as someone who has
argued for a very long time that the FCC over-regulates and meddles in matters
that ought to be left to the judgment of those businesses it regulates, sometimes
to the point of counterproductive micro-management, I am with Mr. Wheeler on this one.
There
will be time enough to be critical when the new Chairman proposes new
regulatory measures that shouldn't be adopted. This is a deregulatory one that
at least should be considered.
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