Under the FCCs "enhanced 911" (E911) guidelines, wireless carriers must have begun selling and activating phones embedded with automatic positioning capabilities by Monday. By Dec. 31, wireless companies will have to show that at least 25 percent of the new phones they sell are equipped with E911 technology.
Monday was also the deadline for wireless companies to have built E911 technology into their networks so the E911-enabled phones will be able to relay GPS information to the necessary authorities.
Advocates of E911 technology say it will be a huge boon to public safety, allowing police and emergency crews to quickly find crime and accident scenes, even in cases in which a caller is unsure of his or her location.
But privacy advocates worry the location technology that lies at the core of the E911 system could open the door to substantial privacy violations by entities seeking to locate individuals who dont want to be found.
Several companies, including some of the nations largest wireless players, have applied for waivers of the FCC deadlines.
Sprint PCS announced Monday it had begun selling "Americas first GPS enabled wireless phone," but although Sprint has complied with that element of the FCC requirement, the company is one of many that have applied for waivers of the E911 network requirements.
Other companies that have applied for E911 waivers of some kind include Cingular Wireless, AT&T Wireless, Verizon Wireless and Qwest Wireless.
Sprint spokeswoman Nancy Sherrer said Monday that building E911 capability into a wireless network requires a massive coordinated effort between public and private entities.
David McGuire, Newsbytes
