Discount Two-Way Radio Warns Consumers: Watch Out for Narrowband Compliance Scammers

HARBOR CITY, Calif., Feb. 14, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Everyone wants to make a buck. And that includes a whole new breed of scammers trying to skim the fat from company and government coffers in light of a new FCC requirement. As of Jan. 1, 2013, all public safety and industrial/business licensees that operate two-way radios must be narrowband compliant. An effort to promote greater spectrum efficiency, the mandate has spurred the rumor that everyone is operating radios that, come the deadline, will suddenly become defunct.

This rumor, however, is simply not true, particularly in the case of most companies or organizations operating with radios that have been purchased by Discount Two-Way Radio, according to Ben Burns, CEO of Discount Two-Way Radio (http://www.discounttwo-wayradio.com). Instead, the bad buzz is part of a scare tactic that's more of a sales pitch to lure consumers into thinking they must buy new and expensive digital radios by 2013. He says two-way radio operators and owners need to ignore these tricks designed to drive radio sales.

"What's going on is highway robbery," Burns says. "We're hearing horror stories every day from new customers who are being scared or coerced into buying something they don't need or can't really afford, so we're on a mission to set the record straight. Many vendors and providers in our industry have deliberately confused, misled or resorted to bullying cash-strapped customers who critically depend on two-way radios."

Unfortunately, Burns reports, police and fire departments, power and energy companies, hotels, resorts, casinos and many other businesses that rely on two-way radios are unnecessarily purchasing or planning to buy entirely new, extremely expensive digital two-way radio systems. "They don't have a clue that the only thing that's likely required for the narrowband compliance is a simple reprogramming of the two-way radios they currently use," explains Burns.

As the North American Distributor of RCA commercial two-way radios and a leading provider to businesses, nonprofits and governments, Discount Two-Way Radio has launched a campaign to alert its clients, customers and potential buyers about the FCC mandate. Throughout the year, it will be sending out regular communications about what is and is not required with the FCC requirement in the hopes of preventing consumers from getting duped. More specifically, Discount Two-Way Radio is offering a complimentary reprogramming service (http://www.discounttwo-wayradio.com/fcc) that will bring most radios into compliance.

"Most of the radios we've been selling are either already compliant or just need to be reprogrammed for the upcoming change in standards," Burns comments. "And Discount Two-Way Radio is doing that for absolutely free."

To take advantage of the free reprogramming, consumers simply fill out an online form and mail in the radios, then Discount Two-Way Radio will take care of all the necessarily updating. Anyone submitting radios for the service will receive regular email communications and documentation related to the order's receipt, reprogramming process, completion and shipping.

"No one wants to feel like they're sending off their radios into some black hole, so we keep people in the loop with regular communications, status updates and more," Burns concludes. "Whether you need to have three or 300 radios reprogrammed, our goal is to do what needs to be done while providing customers with critical peace of mind."

For more details about Discount Two-Way Radio's free reprogramming, visit http://www.discounttwo-wayradio.com/fcc.

Press Contact:

Ben Burns
Discount Two-Way Radio Corporation
[email protected]
(310) 224-5100

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SOURCE Discount Two-Way Radio Corporation