BoatU.S. To Provide Free DSC Radio Registration

The Federal Communications Commission and the U.S. Coast Guard has named BoatU.S. as the first non-governmental organization to issue boaters identification numbers for marine radios with Digital Selective Calling (DSC). Before BoatU.S. volunteered, boaters wanting identification numbers had to pay $120 for an FCC license. BoatU.S. is offering boaters this service free of charge.

Identification numbers for DSC, a new radio technology that makes it much easier to help boaters in distress, are available online at BoatUS.com, or by telephone, fax or mail. With 515,000 members, BoatU.S. is the largest organization of recreational boaters in the world.

DSC is part of the global transition in maritime distress communications from voice calls (on channel 16) to digital communication. For DSC radios to work properly, their owners need a valid FCC ID number (called a Maritime Mobile Service Identity or MMSI) which registers their boats' information in the Coast Guard's national distress database. As neither the FCC nor the Coast Guard had the budget or staff to begin registering DSC radios that in the future could number in the hundreds of thousands, BoatU.S. stepped in and offered to get the job done at no cost to the government.

"This new public-private partnership demonstrates what can be done when we work with the federal government to create programs that will benefit the entire boating community," said BoatU.S. President Bill Oakerson. "We took the lead on this and, although the government allows a fee to be charged, we decided that BoatU.S. should totally underwrite this service because DSC radios have the potential to save many lives within a few years. We also wanted to protect our members from what could have been a steep fee, had the government simply turned the function over to a commercial provider," he added.

DSC radios have been on the consumer market for several years and, in 1999, the FCC began requiring all new models of fixed-mount radios to be equipped with the DSC feature. DSC's major advantage lies in its ability to send an automatic mayday which not only identifies the vessel (by the MMSI) but also gives its location when the radio is connected to a Loran or GPS. Should the skipper become disabled, a DSC radio will continue sending a mayday. Commercial ships have been required to monitor the DSC-reserved distress channel 70 since 1999.

"It's important for boaters to understand that the Coast Guard is not yet monitoring Channel 70 for DSC maydays, and may not be until 2005-6," said Elaine Dickinson, BoatU.S. assistant vice president for government affairs, who spearheaded the work on the MMSI agreement with the FCC and Coast Guard. "However, there have already been instances where commercial ships required to monitor the DSC-reserved channel for distress calls have relayed DSC maydays to the Coast Guard," she said.

Recreational boaters on U.S. waters have not had to have an FCC ship station license since 1996, after BoatU.S. successfully lobbied for three years to reverse the tide of high government fees for minimal services for boaters. "The license fees became a deterrent to boaters putting two-way radios on their boats," said Dickinson. "We realized that forcing boaters back into licensing, at a cost of $120 simply to obtain an MMSI ID number, would undermine the life-saving purpose of the registration system."

DSC has another use available now to boaters as well as commercial vessels. With an MMSI number, one boater can make a "private" radio call to another DSC-equipped vessel. Only the radio number called will receive the transmission. This is especially useful for vessel operators who want to contact another vessel without their calls being broadcast.

To register, Dickinson said, boaters may go online to BoatUS.com and click on "MMSI." Once the registration form is accepted, their MMSI numbers will be issued electronically. Boaters may also e-mail BoatU.S. at MMSI@BoatUS.com. To ask questions or get a registration form by phone, call 800-563-1536; completed forms may be faxed to BoatU.S. at 703-461-2840 or mailed to the BoatU.S. MMSI Program at 880 S. Pickett St., Alexandria, VA 22304.

Posted: 12-21-2000