Former FCC Chair Mark Fowler has joined the board of Rivada Networks. The company develops interoperable public safety communications networks and counts a range of federal, state and local agencies as its customers.
Fowler was the FCC’s longest-serving chairman; he held the position from 1981 to 1987 under Ronald Reagan. He was senior communications counsel at Latham & Watkins from 1987 to 1994.
More recently, the former chairman has co-founded several startup telecom companies and been on the board for Beasley Broadcast Group. We’ve reported Fowler is also working with Digital PowerRadio, which believes it has technology to make HD Radio receivers more efficient.
As for joining the Rivada Networks board, company chairman and CEO Declan Ganley said Fowler’s knowledge about startups as well as regulatory and legal expertise would help the company grow into new markets. Rivada’s technology “will enable the federally mandated nationwide wireless public safety broadband network, FirstNet, to monetize its 20 MHz spectrum allocation in real time to private sector users, subject to ‘ruthless preemption’ when needed by public safety.”
