IBEC -- one of the very few remaining operators of Access BPL systems -- has announced that it is closing down. In an undated announcement that appeared on the IBEC website, the company announced that it has "no other option than to close our doors and cease operations." IBEC claims that it cannot recover financially from the April 2011 tornadoes in Alabama that "ravished some of our major service areas." IBEC provided Internet service via broadband over power lines (BPL) to rural communities.
"While we regret the loss of jobs brought about by IBEC's BPL business failure, in the long run the rural areas that IBEC was trying to serve will be better served by broadband technologies that are superior to BPL and do not pollute the radio spectrum," said ARRL Chief Executive Officer David Sumner, K1ZZ. "While initially IBEC was cooperative in addressing the ARRL's concerns about interference to licensed radio services -- including Amateur Radio -- the ARRL was dismayed to find that the systems as actually deployed fell short of meeting even the inadequate requirements of the FCC's rules. We hope that this latest in the long string of Access BPL failures will persuade the few remaining fans of BPL to turn their attention elsewhere."
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