NEWINGTON, CT, May 30, 2001--The ARRL has asked the FCC to investigate and "take appropriate action" against several companies it alleges have been marketing so-called "long-range cordless telephones" via the Internet. The ARRL took the action in the wake of numerous complaints from the amateur community about sales of the devices, some of which operate on VHF and UHF frequencies allocated to the Amateur Service.
"Because these devices operate on Amateur bands and are capable of causing severe interference to ongoing Amateur communications, and because these devices likely will not meet MPE [Maximum Permissible Exposure] levels for RF exposure, the matter is considered urgent," said the May 29 letter from ARRL General Counsel Chris Imlay, W3KD.
The letter was addressed to FCC Enforcement Bureau Chief David Solomon as well as to Raymond LaForge of the FCC's Office of Engineering and Technology's Equipment Authorization Division and to FCC Special Counsel for Amateur Radio Enforcement Riley Hollingsworth.
"ARRL has not been able to locate any FCC certification for these devices and, based on the advertised frequency bands and ranges, it is believed that none of these devices could be certificated, or legally marketed or sold, under FCC rules," Imlay wrote.
Imlay said the ARRL also is looking into the marketing of products such as 434-MHz video surveillance equipment and other "apparently non-certificated devices" that use amateur frequencies but are being marketed in the US to non-amateurs.
ARRL Lab Supervisor Ed Hare, W1RFI, said he's received several reports concerning long-range cordless telephone devices advertised for sale on the Internet and via auction sites such as eBay. "One of the reports, from Bill Erhardt, K7MT, involved actual harmful interference to amateur communications," Hare said. Erhardt tracked the telephone to a neighbor's home. The neighbor told him he'd bought it on eBay.
Hare said he was glad to see the issue put into the FCC's hands. "All intentional transmitting devices that are marketed in the US must be FCC certificated, as described in the FCC rules," he said. "At the advertised power levels and frequencies, I do not believe that these phones could have been certificated."
The Optima 8810, an apparently uncertificated telephone device being sold in the US. This unit uses a 2-meter frequency. [ARRL Photos] 
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The ARRL was able to obtain one of the long-distance cordless telephones for testing. The device, manufactured in China, bears no FCC identification number or label. The ARRL technical staff determined that the device--an Optima 8810--operates at an output power of greater than 3 W near 147 MHz. Other such phones are advertised as having ranges of up to 100 km operating at power levels of up to 35 W on VHF and UHF. Some models use frequencies in the amateur 2-meter and 1.25-meter bands.
The ARRL offered to send the telephone device "and as much information as it can obtain about the eBay seller" to the FCC. In his letter Imlay noted that the vendor has since disappeared from the auction site.
One of the companies selling the long-range cordless telephones had originally indicated that one such device operated on 147 and 230 MHz. Apparently after it heard complaints from amateurs, the company altered its Web site listing to indicate that the phone operated at 249 and 375 MHz. The ARRL attached to its letter a copy of the Web site of another seller that showed the same telephone as operating on 150 and 230 MHz. The League said some of the companies also may be selling similar wireless products that may operate on amateur or restricted bands.
Hare said some long-range devices are legally certificated to operate on the 900 MHz or 2450 MHz Part 15 bands. "These legal devices are only an issue if they cause actual harmful interference to the Amateur Service," he said.
Hare requested reports of unlicensed devices causing actual harmful interference to Amateur Radio operation. Reports may be sent to rfi@arrl.org.
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