A venture capitalist and former telecom executive with ties to the mHealth Alliance has been nominated by President Barack Obama to lead the Federal Communications Commission.
Thomas Wheeler, managing director of Core Capital Partners in Washington D.C., will succeed outgoing FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski on the five-member FCC board.
According to a Los Angeles Times article, Wheeler headed the National Cable Television Association from 1979 to 1984, spent eight years creating technology companies, took over as head of the Cellular Telecommunications & Internet Association in 1992 and joined Core Capital Partners in 2005.
Wheeler is also an emeritus member of the mHealth Alliance Partnership Board.
"Tom offered unequaled experience and expertise in the telecommunications industry as an Alliance Board Member, both as an entrepreneur and a policy expert," said Patricia Mechael, executive director of the alliance, in a statement issued this morning. "He has for years been an innovator and thought leader in the telecommunications and wireless space, and we have every confidence that his vast experience, in addition to his passion for telecommunications and his deep-seated commitment to advancing technology in this country, will add tremendous value to his new organization.
"The FCC will be fortunate to have such a qualified, knowledgeable and enthusiastic leader at its helm, and we look forward to following Tom's activities as the head of the commission. We know that, in this role, he will make a substantive contribution to driving global progress through the use of telecommunications."
Wheeler will have to pass Senate confirmation to take the post, a process that could take months. In the interim, Democratic Commissioner Mignon Clyburn will become acting chairman upon Genachowski's departure in the coming weeks, becoming the first woman to head the agency.
"Tom Wheeler is an experienced leader in the communications technology field who shares the president's commitment to protecting consumers, promoting innovation, enhancing competition and encouraging investment," said a White House official, who was not authorized to speak publicly and declined to be named, in the Times story.
Genachowski, who spent four years as FCC chairman, set ambitious goals during his term, including overseeing the conversion of an $8 billion federal program to extend telephone service to rural and low-income Americans. He also succeeded in launching the Healthcare Connect Fund, a $400 million annual effort to spur the development of broadband networks to support telemedicine projects.
