US Made Progress at WRC Prep Meeting, Huge Challenges Remain, State Dept. Official Says
The U.S, accomplished what it needed at the recent Conference Preparatory Meeting (CPM) for the 2019 World Radiocommunication Conference, despite later concerns (see 1903010042), said Franz Zichy, a State Department engineer, at a Thursday FCBA event. The next big step is the final Inter-American Telecommunication Commission prep meeting in Ottawa in August, speakers said.
Sign up for a free preview to unlock the rest of this article
Communications Daily is required reading for senior executives at top telecom corporations, law firms, lobbying organizations, associations and government agencies (including the FCC). Join them today!
Zichy told us the Trump administration will follow precedent and give Grace Koh, named head of the U.S. delegation after the CPM (see 1903050055), a temporary ambassador title. Koh “is going to do a great job,” said Harris Wiltshire lawyer Tricia Paoletta, who also spoke at Thursday's event.
“We’ll do great, but it does depend on how we progress our discussions … between now and WRC,” Zichy said. “We have several agenda items that look like they could be very difficult. There’s still discussions within the U.S. on several.” Industry segments should be open minded, he said. “I think we will come to a resolution that’s painful to all sides,” he joked.
Zichy found the CPM productive. “We got a preview of what’s coming up at the WRC, preparing our positions for bilateral discussions,” he said. On some key issues, the U.S. should be able to find a “happy medium” with other countries, he said. “It’s kind of a give and take.”
Success isn’t guaranteed, Zichy said. “We’ll do great, but it does depend on how we progress our discussions … between now and WRC,” he said. The U.S has 14 contributions ready for the CITEL, with a goal of filing 17, he said. Some smaller countries are having a hard time getting ready for the WRC, Zichy said. “They’re struggling with the CPM text,” he said. “They’re struggling with the results of studies. They’re struggling with the methods because they’re so complicated.”
"Active listening" is critical, said Jennifer Warren, Lockheed-Martin vice president-technology policy and regulation. “Sometimes, it’s hard to actively listen to what other countries need and want and then understand why,” she said. “That’s always an important part of our winning, is understanding how do we win together.”
“We were a little behind the curve getting our 5G proposals down to CITEL” Paoletta said. “We do need some more progress” before the Ottawa meeting, she said. The U.S “disadvantages” itself by appointing a temporary ambassador before every WRC instead of making that a permanent job, Paoletta said. “It hurts us.“ The ambassador “has to bone up,” she said. “It’s a huge, huge job.” But she noted the future ambassador is rarely the head of the delegation at the CPM.
Warren said other regions will be holding similar prep meetings. “Everybody … will be going through their own process to get to final closure on different items,” she said. “Between now and the WRC, it will be a constant engagement.”