Rosenworcel Expected to Seek Vote on 6 GHz Order Before WRC
FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel appears to be teeing up an order on revised rules for the 6 GHz band for one of the commissioners' open meetings before the World Radiocommunication Conference, which starts Nov. 20 in Dubai. The WRC includes an agenda item on whether to identify the upper 700 MHz of the band for international mobile telecommunications, which the U.S. opposes, and the order would lay down a strong U.S. marker in favor of unlicensed use of the band, Wi-Fi advocates told us.
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The FCC order is expected to address changes proposed in an April 2020 Further NPRM (see 2004230059) permitting very-low-power (VLP) devices to operate on the 6 GHz band indoors without automated frequency control and increasing the power at which low-power indoor (LPI) access points may operate. Industry officials earlier said FCC engineers appeared to have all the information they need to make a decision (see 2306230046). The FCC declined comment Monday.
The fight continues over the future of the 6 GHz band. Public interest and consumer groups asked the FCC last week to wrap up work on the FNPRM, citing digital equity and inclusion (see 2308030061). Members of the Public Interest Spectrum Coalition explained their arguments to staff at the Office of Engineering and Technology, said a filing posted Monday in docket 18-295. The coalition “believes the need for more intensive sharing and open spectrum access is clear,” the filing said: “As connected devices and high-bandwidth applications proliferate, they will require increasing bandwidth to accommodate the growing exchange of traffic, making the capacity and capability of the 6 GHz band urgent.”
“The primary concern of our … coalition is to ensure that the final rules for Wi-Fi inside homes and for very-low-power devices do not create a new Wi-Fi digital divide,” said Michael Calabrese, director of New America's Wireless Future Project, Monday. “Next generation Wi-Fi 6E and 7 promise enormous benefits, allowing consumers to distribute and share the gigabits of connectivity made possible by high-capacity cable and fiber to the home,” he said: “If it takes a network of Wi-Fi repeaters, or a database subscription, to access these benefits, the FCC will have undermined the success story of Wi-Fi as a technology that democratizes affordable connectivity everywhere.”
“With the legal challenges and other issues resolved, the time is right for the FCC to finalize the 6 GHz rules to meet the ever-growing demand for Wi-Fi connectivity,” said Alex Roytblat, Wi-Fi Alliance vice president-regulatory affairs.
“WifiForward commends the FCC’s pro-innovation approach and leadership in dedicating the 6 GHz band to unlicensed use and encourages the international spectrum community to follow this all-of-the-above approach at WRC,” a spokesperson emailed: “WifiForward urges the FCC to build on that success and encourages the international community to follow suit by approving proposals to allow increased power for LPI devices and for VLP devices to operate across the 6 GHz band. Both moves will allow consumers and businesses to realize the full value of the 6 GHz band, without posing any material risk to incumbents in the band, leading to further innovation and fostering new technologies that will benefit American consumers.”
Some 6 GHz incumbents want the FCC to drop any plans to adopt proposals in the 2020 FNPRM.
The FCC “has a responsibility to first ensure that its existing rules will protect incumbents’ mission critical communications,” said the Utilities Technology Council and Edison Electric Institute in a joint statement. “The Commission should not move forward until these rules have been proven to prevent interference to licensed microwave systems in the 6 GHz band,” they said: “Instead of moving forward with an order, the Commission should develop effective automated frequency coordination, given that numerous real-world tests by utilities have confirmed on the record that commercially available FCC-certified unlicensed uncontrolled low-power indoor devices will cause harmful interference to licensed microwave systems, thereby threatening mission critical communications.”
The Enterprise Wireless Alliance “remains concerned that there are no mutually agreed upon protocols in place on how to identify, mitigate and compensate incumbents when interference from 6 GHz unlicensed devices impact their mission-critical communications,” a spokesperson emailed. “We also have yet to observe any appreciation for the contributions incumbent systems provide in the way of critical services, safety, and security to the American public and the consequences should their microwave systems be disrupted due to interference,” the spokesperson said: “EWA along with other industry organizations are on record encouraging the FCC to mandate collaborative real-world testing and the sharing of data before further rule changes are adopted.”
Representatives of the Edison Electric Institute and FirstEnergy met with an aide to Rosenworcel last week about a recent FirstEnergy interference study (see 2305100047). FirstEnergy said “it uses microwave [fixed-service] links where fiber is not feasible or cost effective such as in areas where there are mountains, valleys, and forests, but also in urban areas,” the utility representatives said in a filing posted Monday. “FirstEnergy noted that there are few wireless options available with the same capacity and range” as the 6 GHz links, they said.