Analog Cellular Shutdown To Hit Built-In Devices

Nick Kilkenny sends us an AP article on the imminent shutdown of the US analog cellular network, now 24 years old. The network is scheduled to go dark on Feb. 18, 2008; some users, such as OnStar, are stopping analog service at the end of this year. Here's a list of devices and industries that will be affected by the shutdown. (Cellular telephony won't be affected much.) "The shutdown date has been known years in advance, but some industries appear to have a had a problem updating their technologies and informing their customers in advance... General Motors Corp., which owns OnStar, started modifying its cars after the 2002 decision by the Federal Communications Commission to let the network die, but some cars made as late as 2005 can't use digital networks for OnStar, nor can they be upgraded. For some cars made in the intervening years, GM provides digital upgrades for $15." Update: 12/22 22:25 GMT by KD : Replaced two registration-required links.

Comments

Analog networks in Europe are off the air

[jonfr]

In Europe most analog networks are going off the air, the remaining networks are just NMT networks, emergency networks are all gone digital (cops and other like it). The last one is going go off in 2009, in Iceland. The NMT network in Sweden is going off the air 1 January, 2008. The NMT network in Iceland is going off the air in January 2009. The switch off is going to start in Iceland 2008.

The U.S appears to be far behind Europe in this respect. Since they still have there analog networks up and running and have problems moving to digital service.

Re:Why

[HTH NE1]

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