Wireless companies face uphill battle

By Pamela G. Dempsey
Diné Bureau

Cellular phone service in the Navajo Nation is poor and wireless companies are facing obstacles expanding their services. [Illustration by Daniel Zollinger/Independent]

WINDOW ROCK — Limited wireless service across the Navajo Nation may not lie solely with the providers.

The tribe's unusually high fees and long processes are two of the wireless communication industry's biggest obstacles in bringing better service to its reservation customers.

"The processes are far more time consuming and expensive," said Keith Utt, a contractor with Alltel for telecommunication site development.

The Navajo Nation has set fee structures for wireless companies high above fair market rates.

For example, the tribe charges the same monthly fee, an estimated four times of off-reservation fees, for a wireless company to build a new cell tower or co-locate on an existing one.

And adding new cell towers on reservation lands can take more than a year through the current processes.

In Gallup, this process takes just weeks.

"We want to serve this area like we serve anywhere else," said Brian Gilbert, tribal relations and market development coordinator with CellularOne.

But the current processes make it tough.

Alex Montoya, executive director of the Navajo Nation Telecommunications Regulatory Commission, said that legislation is in the developing stages to streamline the processes down from one year to five days.

"More towers equals more revenue (for the tribe)," Montoya said.

Although there are seven federal licenses issued to operate on the Navajo Nation, just three companies are currently utilizing theirs.

Verizon Wireless is one of them.

"We're always looking for new locations and expansion opportunities," said Jenny Weaver, spokesperson for Verizon Wireless. "At this time, we don't have any (expansion) plans for the Navajo Nation."

The next Navajo Nation Telecommunication Regulatory Commission meeting will be held on June 16 at 9 a.m. at Antelope Point Marina.

For more information: http://www.nntrc.org