For Immediate Release
April 7, 2000

Contact:
Ranjit de Silva (202) 482-7002
Art Brodsky (202)482-0019

Washington- The Commerce Department's National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) will host the first meeting under the Wireless Innovations in Communications Initiative (WICI), a new NTIA initiative to enable the federal government to promote more actively innovation in the development and use of new communications technologies. The WICI Committee, established as an ad hoc committee of the Interdepartment Radio Advisory Committee, is composed of senior experts from various federal government agencies. The WICI will include a series of meetings in which representatives from federal agencies will discuss their communications requirements and industry representatives will be invited to present new technology developments to Committee members that might respond to these needs.

This first joint meeting will focus on software radio developments in the Department of Defense. A detailed information brief will be provided by representatives from the Department of Defense on the Joint Tactical Radio System (JTRS). The JTRS is a family of high-capacity tactical radios capable of operating across the 2 MHz to 2 GHz for command, control, communications, computers, and intelligence functions. Dynamic bandwidth management and software re-programmability are key features of these radios. Attendees to the meeting from other federal agencies and industry are invited to join in the discussion of this major federal program.

WHEN: April 11, 2000
1:30 - 3:30 p.m.

WHERE: Room 6808
U.S. Department of Commerce
1401 Constitution Ave. N.W.
Washington, DC 20230

REGISTRATION: Online registration for industry representatives is required. Instructions for registration are provided on the NTIA web site at www.ntia.doc.gov/osmhome/wici