Politics

Every revolution has its political issues. Free software for building radios is troublesome to some people. In the US, we’ve run into opposition from the Motion Picture Association of America and its attempt with the Broadcast Flag to restrict the kinds of receivers that can be built for over-the-air digital TV.

The US Federal Communications Commission has issued a Notice of Proposed Rule Making (NPRM) concerning Cognitive Radio Technologies and Software Defined Radios. Several troublesome issues are raised in the NPRM, including restricting the sale of high-speed digital-to-analog converters, requirements for digital signatures or similar methods to keep unauthorized software out of software radio hardware and new restrictions on radios built for the amateur radio market.