New Amazon Kindle Fire Tablet Does not have FCC approval for Sale: Amazon.com said its innovative wireless technology as one of the main points of its exclusive promotion Kindle Devices, presented Thursday by its CEO Jeff Bezos.
Just one problem: the devices have not yet been approved by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC, for its acronym in English).
The FCC approval is required for wireless communication products, to ensure that they operate safely and not improperly interfere with other signals.
A confirmation email advance purchase, Amazon sent on the evening of Thursday, September 6, included the following note: “We will send you an email asking you to confirm your purchase early Kindle Fire when approved for sale by the Commission Federal Communications “.
Amazon is receiving advance orders for Kindle Fire tablet HD $ 499 (389 euros). He wears a 22 inch screen and 4G technology. The company plans to ship the equipment on 20 November when it believes will have the necessary approval, according to a spokesman.
Lawyers and analysts familiar with the procedures for approval of the FCC say it is unlikely that the agency reject Amazon devices beforehand. Although certification process could drag on beyond the scheduled date. But they say it is very unusual for a company to announce a major new product without first receiving authorization from the agency.
“I can not think of an instance in which an appliance that has been offered by a carrier or a U.S. retailer even without the approval of the FCC,” said John Jackson, an analyst at CCS Insight wireless technology. An FCC spokeswoman declined to comment.
The ‘tablet’ Kindle Fire 4G are a key part of efforts to challenge Amazon Apple iPad market technology exclusively.
The lack of FCC approval at this stage is possibly a result of the lack of experience of Amazon with wireless devices, according to Forrester Research analyst Charles Golvin.
Furthermore, the partner of the law firm Fletcher, Heald & Hildreth, Mitchell Lazarus, who has 27 years of experience getting FCC approvals for new technology, said Apple, Motorola, now owned by Google, Samsung and Microsoft have never had such a problem. “These companies have dedicated staff whose job is to ensure compliance with FCC rules and they do their job very well,” said Lazarus.
Sprint Nextel provider does not authorize the advance sale of phones unless they have the approval of the FCC. “In the vast majority of cases, do not accept a phone in our laboratory formal process has not already received FCC approval,” said spokeswoman Michelle Leff Mermelstein Sprint.
A spokesman for AT & T, which provides the 4G data plan for new ‘tablets’ wireless Kindle Fire, declined to comment.
FCC rules prohibit promoting devices that have not been approved for sale by the agency. However, there is an exception that allows advertising them as long as they include a warning in their promotion, as Lazarus.
The Amazon press release announcing the devices and pages of description of the products on the website of the company include this warning.
The text says “the ‘tablet’ 4G has not been authorized as required by the rules of the Federal Communications Commission. This appliance is not, could not be, offered for sale or lease, or sold or leased, until you get authorization “.