CEA Encourages The FCC To Expand the Use of NOAA Weather Radio; Also Commends Independent Panel for Its Work and Important Recommendations.ARLINGTON, Va. -- The Federal Communications Commission Federal Communications Commission (FCC), independent executive agency of the U.S. government established in 1934 to regulate interstate and foreign communications in the public interest. (FCC (1) (Federal Communications Commission, Washington, DC, www.fcc.gov) The U.S. government agency that regulates interstate and international communications including wire, cable, radio, TV and satellite. The FCC was created under the U.S. ) should expand the distribution of non-weather emergency messages using the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration's (NOAA NOAA abbr. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Noun 1. NOAA - an agency in the Department of Commerce that maps the oceans and conserves their living resources; predicts changes to the earth's environment; ) National Weather Radio (NWR NWR National Wildlife Refuge NWR NOAA Weather Radio NWR National Wildlife Reserve NWR North West Region NWR Not Work Related NWR Network Wavelength Requirement NWR Not Worth Reporting NWR Nuclear Weapons Report ), said the Consumer Electronics Association (CEA CEA carcinoembryonic antigen. CEA abbr. carcinoembryonic antigen CEA (Carcinoembryonic antigen) (R)) in comments recently filed with the FCC. CEA's comments came in response to the Commission's Notice of Proposed Rulemaking A notice of proposed rulemaking or NPRM is issued by law when a regulatory agency of the United States Federal Government wishes to add, remove, or change a rule (or regulation) as part of the rulemaking process. Outside the USA. (NPRM (Notice of Proposed Rule Making) An announcement by an agency of the U.S. government that proposes a change in regulations. It is followed up by a final ruling. ) reviewing the impact of Hurricane Katrina on communications networks. Hurricane Katrina highlighted the need for a reliable emergency communications system. In it's filing, CEA restated its belief that it is important for the Commission to consider the full array of emergency alerts. NOAA Weather Radio has developed into an effective collection and distribution system estimated to originate more than 96 percent of all emergency alerts. To that end, the NWR delivery system today would be more appropriately named "all-hazards radio" than "weather radio." EAS (Electronic Article Surveillance) A security system for preventing theft in retail stores that uses disposable label tags or reusable hard tags attached to the merchandise. has evolved into a voluntary system in which broadcasters exercise discretion over which alerts to transmit, and NWR is a critical component providing broadcasters almost immediate access to the emergency alerts. Closer integration of EAS and NWR would serve to improve public awareness of these facilities and quicken the dissemination of critical emergency information, said CEA. CEA's Public Alert Technology Alliance (PATA (Parallel ATA) Refers to the original ATA (IDE) technology that uses a parallel data channel from the controller to the disk drives. After Serial ATA drives became popular, the PATA term was coined to specifically refer to the parallel drives. See IDE and SATA. ) is one example of the industry's effort to bring product manufacturers and government representatives together in a voluntary cooperative endeavor. With collaboration from NOAA, PATA has adopted voluntary uniform requirements for consumer receivers that display the Public Alert logo and trigger alerts by decoding the entire digital data string transmitted over NWR broadcasts. The Public Alert-certified devices also provide automatic translation for all alerts into English, Spanish and Canadian French and alert technology for the hearing impaired. CEA also urged the Commission to avoid any mandatory standards on reception equipment. "Such a change would disserve dis·serve tr.v. dis·served, dis·serv·ing, dis·serves To treat badly; harm. the public interest," stated CEA President and CEO (1) (Chief Executive Officer) The highest individual in command of an organization. Typically the president of the company, the CEO reports to the Chairman of the Board. Gary Shapiro. "In the fast-paced world of technology, only marketplace forces have the agility needed for manufacturers to adjust in a timely fashion to consumer needs and technological improvements." CEA commends the Independent Panel for its work and important recommendations. About CEA: The Consumer Electronics Association (CEA) is the preeminent trade association promoting growth in the consumer technology industry through technology policy, events, research, promotion and the fostering of business and strategic relationships. CEA represents more than 2,100 corporate members involved in the design, development, manufacturing, distribution and integration of audio, video, mobile electronics, wireless and landline communications, information technology, home networking, multimedia and accessory products, as well as related services that are sold through consumer channels. Combined, CEA's members account for more than $125 billion in annual sales. CEA's resources are available online at www.CE.org, the definitive source for information about the consumer electronics industry. CEA also sponsors and manages the International CES - Defining Tomorrow's Technology. All profits from CES are reinvested into industry services, including technical training and education, industry promotion, engineering standards development, market research and legislative advocacy.
UPCOMING EVENTS
-- CEA Industry Forum
October 16-18, 2006, San Francisco, CA
-- New York Press Preview
November 8, 2006, New York, NY
-- CES Unveiled@NY
November 8, 2006, New York, NY
-- CONNECTIONS(TM) Europe: Strategies for Digital Living Markets
November 14-16, 2006, Berlin, Germany
-- CES Unveiled: The Official Press Event of the International CES
January 6, 2007, Las Vegas, NV
-- 2007 International CES
January 8-11, 2007, Las Vegas, NV
|
|
||||||||||||||
Printer friendly
Cite/link
Email
Feedback
Reader Opinion