If you are a US-licensed station that routinely connects to
a foreign gateway, or a non-US-licensed station that connects with a US
gateway, you may be affected by new CMS behavior. The Winlink CMS now will
enforce US Third-Party Message rules.
Because Winlink is being severely criticized for allowing US
client and gateway operators to violate US amateur radio third-party traffic
rules, we are today starting to test automatic enforcement of these rules. Part
97.3(47), 97.115 and 97.117 apply.
If you attempt to send or receive a third-party message
between a US-licensed station and another station the US does not have a
third-party communication agreement with, you may receive a service message
saying the message will violate the applcable rules and that the message is
refused (if you're sending) or being held at the CMS (if you are receiving).
Alternative means to successfully send or receive the message will be explained.
The US has treaties with most countries in the North and South America, but not
most European, Asian and Pacific countries.
If you are a US-licensee, you should have no trouble sending
and receiving to/from internet addresses if you connect with another
US-licensed gateway, or one licensed in Central or South America — as long as
the US has a third-party agreement with the licensing country.
If you are a non-US licensee, you should have no trouble
sending and receiving to/from internet addresses if you connect to non-US
licensed gateways.
We wish this was not necessary, but we have relied on US
client and gateway operators to know the rules and obey them—and most have
ignored them, unfortunately for all of us. In order to clean up the violations
we are taking these measures to keep US Winlink operators legal. All licensees
have an obligation to study, know, and obey the Amateur Radio Rules.
New monitoring and enforcement measures are coming into play
with the establishment of a new Volunteer Monitor Program, now being set up by
the ARRL at the request of the US FCC. We're doing this to make it easier for
US operators to avoid loosing their licenses!
We will be tweaking the behavior of this new mechanism to
make it as friendly and informative as it can be. Please bear with us as we
make changes.
Thanks and 73,
Lor W3QA
Winlink Development Team
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