Major Upgrade Coming to Manassas, Va., Broadband Over Powerline System

Communication Technologies Inc. (COMTek) announced today that it will upgrade all of its 600 overhead broadband over powerline (BPL) devices in Manassas, Va., to the latest Mainnet second generation "G2" technology in order to further enhance the broadband services it is delivering to a rapidly growing number of residential and commercial customers in this outlying Washington, D.C., suburb.

COMTek filed a report on the Manassas system with the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) in which the company reported that an independent FCC-certified testing laboratory could find no interference attributable to BPL in the specific ham radio frequencies covered in a recent FCC filing made by an amateur radio enthusiast. The laboratory conducted rigorous FCC-mandated testing, including "on/off testing" to show the level of interference with BPL in operation and with BPL turned off. An almost identical level of interference was found in the ham radio bands covered in the complaint to the FCC, regardless of whether or not the BPL equipment was in operation. This means that, while ham radio operators may have detected the interference reported to the FCC, it does not appear to arise from COMTek's BPL operations.

COMTek Vice President Walt Adams said: "The COMTek decision to upgrade its overhead BPL equipment in Manassas reflects our longstanding commitment to provide the best available hardware and services for our rapidly growing customer base. BPL in Manassas is a real success story that shows that the 'first wire' to homes is a viable means of delivering affordable broadband to homes and businesses that otherwise face limited alternatives and unnecessarily high prices."

In its FCC filing, COMTek said that it will continue with other testing in the coming months, including other ham radio frequencies.

The COMTek network in Manassas, said the company in a release, is the first commercial deployment of BPL in the nation to use a city-wide electricity grid to provide individual homes and businesses with direct "plug in" broadband access through electric sockets, rather than over phone or cable TV lines.

As of mid-January, COMTek had completed 100 percent notching of all BPL devices (internal and external to customer premises) in the overhead areas of Manassas and is now engaged in ongoing monitoring of the BPL network. A total of 590 BPL-related devices in Manassas were notched by COMTek in order to address any potential interference issues.