The agreement effectively avoids traffic collisions in the invisible radio spectrum between high-speed Internet surfers and America's soldiers.
Under the compromise, manufacturers agreed to build into future devices technology to detect and actively avoid interfering with military radars that operate on similar frequencies. The deal also specifies how sensitive that detection technology must be.
In exchange, defense officials will endorse U.S. proposals to nearly double the amount of lucrative wireless frequencies, which will permit more Internet traffic.
"That's important to the industry," said Peter Pitsch, communications policy director for Intel. "We came up with a good compromise."
The wireless Internet market has been one of the few bright spots in the technology industry, which has been hit hard in the economic downturn.
Assistant Commerce Secretary Nancy Victory said the Bush administration "continued its goal of stimulating the economy and ensuring the national defense."
Defense officials worried that the cumulative effects of tens of millions of these devices in a city's downtown could degrade the performance of at least one dozen different radar systems that might be operating nearby.
"To us, the important thing was that military radars were protected from interference," Deputy Assistant Defense Secretary Steven Price said.
Price said some radars that could have been affected include air- and sea-tracking systems and even weather warning systems.
Industry experts said the technology being added to wireless devices probably would cost a few extra dollars.
U.S. officials are expected to formally announce provisions of the compromise this week. The deal came after weeks of intense negotiations. Insiders said it was vital that a deal be reached before an international radio conference in June 2003.
Ed Thomas, chief engineer for the Federal Communications Commission, called the agreement "good for the Department of Defense and good for industry."
The compromise affects an increasingly popular flavor of "WiFi" wireless Internet devices that fall under the technical moniker "802.11a." These latest computer devices, coming on sale now in retail stores, offer wireless access that is up to five times faster than older wireless devices.
A spokesman for Microsoft, Jim Desler, said the compromise "provided government systems the protection they need while allowing industry to create the innovative solutions that a vibrant and growing market demand."
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