Garmin International sought a waiver of FCC rules to allow certification of hand-held general mobile radio service (GMRS) devices it manufactures. Garmin said the waiver would be similar to one the Wireless Bureau granted Midland Radio in July, for “much higher power, non-hand-held GMRS devices” installed on off-road vehicles. “Grant of this waiver request will permit Garmin to market hand-held GMRS devices that automatically transmit digital data, such as GPS location data, once every five seconds, for a very short duration (50 milliseconds each), provided that the channel being used has not been utilized for voice communications in the prior 30 seconds during non-emergency situations,” Garmin said in a filing posted Friday: Approval “will promote public safety by enabling a more-frequent exchange of location information among GMRS users, which is important when individual users of the GMRS devices are trying to locate each other (or when rescuers are searching for an individual) in a remote area with little to no cellular reception.”

Tech companies said they met with staff for all FCC commissioners, except Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel, to support the 6 GHz order teed up for a vote at the Oct. 19 meeting (see 2309280071). The proposed rule change “will enable American companies to build mobile devices that take advantage of the high speeds and low latencies made possible by 6 GHz unlicensed connectivity,” said a filing posted Friday in docket 18-295. Participating in the meetings were Apple, Broadcom, Meta Platforms, Google and Qualcomm. The order permits use of very-low-power 6 GHz devices anywhere without location awareness or automated frequency control. Edison Electric Institute representatives, meanwhile, met with staff for all the commissioners, except Anna Gomez, on utilities’ general concern that “the proliferation of unlicensed devices will render the 6 GHz band unusable for its members.” EEI stressed its support for automated frequency coordination. “Electric companies do not compete with providers of unlicensed devices,” EEI said: “Electric companies operate 6 GHz communications networks to provide for the safety of electric company personnel and to maintain the backbone of electric companies’ operations during emergencies and disasters such as hurricanes, tornadoes, and wildfires.”

Consumers are looking for more from 5G than just coverage, says a report by Ericsson, based on online interviews with 37,000 consumers. “5G network satisfaction is improving -- but satisfaction drivers are evolving beyond coverage to app experience,” the report said. “5G users with over a year of experience are less satisfied than 5G newcomers, and video streaming is 20 percent more important to them in driving satisfaction than for 5G newcomers,” the report said. Ericsson also found 5G consumers are willing to pay a premium price for differentiated connectivity: “A significant 20 percent of smartphone users expect differentiated 5G connectivity, seeking elevated and consistent performance linked to demanding apps or key locations. They are willing to pay an average premium of up to 11 percent for a 5G plan that ensures elevated network performance.”

Federated Wireless filed a report at the FCC on lab tests of its 6 GHz automated frequency coordination system, a step toward full operation. In August, the Office of Engineering and Technology launched a process for testing AFC systems (see 2308250061) and last year provisionally approved 13 companies to be AFC operators (see 2211030066). The report “demonstrates that the Federated Wireless 6 GHz AFC system has successfully passed the lab test,” said a filing posted Friday in docket 21-352. The Wi-Fi Alliance also reported a successful test of its system.

The Wireless ISP Association told the FCC its members shouldn’t be subject to tighter regulations under proposed net neutrality rules (see 2309260047). “The average number of subscribers for each of our broadband ISP providers is about 1,500,” WISPA said, in a filing posted Friday in docket 23-320. ”Our individual broadband ISP providers do not have the market power or incentive to engage in blocking, throttling, or paid prioritization that would warrant imposing heavy handed Title II regulations on our members.” WISPA representatives met with aides to Commissioners Brendan Carr, Geoffrey Starks and Nathan Simington. Even with the forbearance contemplated, the proposed NPRM reclassification “would have a disproportionately adverse” effect on WISPs, WISPA said: “The vast majority of WISPA’s members have 10 or fewer employees, much less a whole department dedicated to regulatory compliance. When added to existing compliance responsibilities such as the Broadband Data Collection requirements and Broadband Labeling requirement, the additional burdens of complying with Title II regulation will constitute a further significant cost of doing business, resulting in higher prices for broadband services and a diversion of resources away from broadband deployment investment.”

The Wireless ISP Association wants a pilot program as a next step in response to the FCC’s August notice of inquiry on understanding nonfederal spectrum use. The pilot should “study occupancy in a small number of bands with different characteristics, such as an exclusively licensed band, a Part 101 point-to-point band and a band in which multiple use cases are present,” WISPA said: “These bands should be reviewed to determine whether and to what extent they are ‘occupied’ or ‘fully occupied,’ taking into account geography, frequency and time and the particular licensing structure.” Among other comments filed this week in docket 23-232 (see 2310040056), the Aerospace and Flight Test Radio Coordinating Council reminded the commission of the importance of aeronautical mobile telemetry (AMT). “Bottom line, interference-free access to adequate and ‘always ready’ flight test spectrum in the AMT bands is a fundamental element of all flight tests,” the council said: “There is no Plan B if spectrum is unavailable for a flight test when it is scheduled.” For alarm radios “and other quasi-safety operations (as well as public safety operations) in the Part 90 spectrum, crowding the channels with the maximum amount of user traffic should not be the Commission’s spectrum management goal,” said the Alarm Industry Communications Committee. Any measurement approach “should be tailored to the Commission’s intended use of the data” and “avoid over or undervaluing a particular service or technology,” said NCTA. “The Commission should measure how much total data is carried by all users of a particular service in a particular spectrum range -- and should do so in a way that recognizes differences between technologies rather that designing a measurement system with one technology or service in mind,” the group said. “There is no one-size-fits-all in calculating spectrum utilization,” the Enterprise Wireless Alliance said. EWA noted most of its members rely on frequency-specific spectrum licensed under Parts 90 and 101 of FCC rule. “These are narrowband, non-contiguous frequencies with very limited bandwidth,” the group said: “Unlike systems authorized for broad swathes of spectrum over large geographic areas, these private internal systems are held accountable for each frequency and site authorized. Their license data is captured in the Universal Licensing System, which, when functioning, offers as detailed a description of utilization of this spectrum as any alternative system could provide.”

Qualcomm, one of the first companies to open a portal for public tests of its 6 GHz automated frequency coordination system (see 2308300018), filed at the FCC a report on lab tests of its system. “The Report describes each test performed using WinnForum’s Test Harness,” said a filing posted Wednesday in docket 21-352.

The average mobile phone user in the U.S. receives 14 spam calls a month, voice security company Hiya said Thursday. “The big takeaway is that one-fourth of all unknown phone calls analyzed by Hiya were unwanted,” the company said. Among top spam calls are Amazon impersonators who “say they suspect an unauthorized purchase, or that the credit card linked to the account needs to be updated,” Hiya reported. Other common scams involve insurance, Medicare and credit card fraud, the company said.

Wireless competition is heating up, with the three biggest U.S. carriers announcing the pending availability of the Google Pixel 8, Pixel 8 Pro and Pixel Watch 2 phones Wednesday. All offered free or reduced-priced phones to new and existing customers. New Google handsets “are coming to Verizon and we’ve got the best deals to help you to make the move to America’s most reliable 5G network or upgrade your phone right now,” Verizon said. “Only T-Mobile customers can get faster speeds on the new Pixel smartphones with T-Mobile's 5G standalone four-carrier aggregation, paired with value-packed plans,” T-Mobile said. “We’ve got your back,” AT&T said: “Everyone gets our best deals on the new Google Pixel series, whether you’re a new or existing customer, upgrading, or adding a new line.”

Mint Mobile appealed a decision by the Better Business Bureau's National Advertising Division that the provider should discontinue or modify the claim that its unlimited plan is “now just $15/mo.,” NAD said Wednesday. AT&T had brought the challenge, which was appealed to the bureau’s National Advertising Review Board. Mint argues that since it only offers “wireless service plans in three-, six-, and twelve-month increments” consumers understand that the offer wasn’t made “in perpetuity, or of longer duration similar to introductory pricing offered by other wireless carriers,” NAD said. NAD said “the challenged advertising does not adequately disclose that the $15 monthly service is a promotional offer for only three months of service.”