Stories by Etta Michael Bisong
Abuja
The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) has cautioned individuals and organisations that install frequency jammers which disrupt the free flow of communication traffic on their premises to remove them or be sanctioned.
Speaking during a capacity training forum held for journalists in Lagos, NCC’s Director of Spectrum Administration, Dr Nwaulume Augustine, said the regulator monitors jammers, adding that when such is discovered; the regulator would demobilise the jammers, explaining that frequency jammers are equipment that harbours no data.
“Frequency jammers are like white noise that you generate to disrupt the actual radio communication. They are done deliberately so that you will not be able to initiate or receive calls. That is the intention,” he said.
On the country’s campaign to meet the broadband target, he said a committee had been set up to harmonise the handover of the spectrum that would partly facilitate the achievement from the goals. The frequencies are still in the custody of the National Broadcasting Commission (NBC).
The spectrum is called 2.6 gigahertz (GHz) and it ranges from 2.5GHz to 2.69Ghz. Before now, it was used by the NBC operators who are licensed to do Muti-channel Multi-point Distribution System (MDDS).
MDDS is defined as a wireless system consists that of head-end equipment (equipment for satellite signal reception, radio transmitter, other broadcast equipment, and transmission antenna) and reception equipment at each subscriber location (antenna, frequency conversion device, and set-top device). MMDS transmits on Super High Frequency (SHF) microwave frequencies and can be encoded for pay-for-view and subscriber services, all from studio facility.
“That committee is still working. I don’t know if it is possible for the licence to be auctioned this year based on the fact that not so much progress has been made with regard to getting it freed from those users,” he said. “But I am very sure that by the first or second quarter of next year, something would have happened because it is very important. It is very vital to wireless broadband.”
