Wi-Fi equipment makers disputed arguments by AT&T that the FCC shouldn’t provide further flexibility for unlicensed 6 GHz devices without a requirement for automated frequency coordination. “There is no time urgency to act on the proposals to raise the LPI [low power indoor] power limit or to authorize VLP [very low-power] operations because it is now apparent that the use cases supporting those proposals can be realized under AFC control,” AT&T said last month (see 2209120027). “AT&T’s assertion is simply incorrect,” said the equipment makers' filing posted Thursday in docket 18-295. “There are significant costs to develop, deploy, and operate an AFC-coordinated device,” the companies said: Costs include “geolocation capabilities, additional installation requirements, support for the AFC-to-device protocol interface, changes to radio resource management algorithms to incorporate AFC frequency and power inputs, updates to the user interface to reflect AFC operational aspects, and recurring costs associated with the AFC system. AFC coordination also introduces significant complexity for installation and ongoing operational management.” Cisco, Extreme Networks, Hewlett Packard Enterprise and Juniper Networks signed the letter.

Comments are due Nov. 10, replies Nov. 25, in the FCC’s NPRM (docket 21-402) to require wireless providers to block texts “at the network level” that purport to be from invalid, unallocated or unused numbers, plus numbers on a Do-Not-Originate list, said a notice in Tuesday’s Federal Register. The FCC is seeking comment (see 2209270070) “on the extent to which spoofing is a problem” for text messaging and what things the commission can do “to encourage providers to identify and block texts that appear to come from spoofed numbers,” it said. The agency also wants to know about the practicality of “applying caller ID authentication standards” to text messaging, it said. Wireless carriers and other texting service providers "should monitor and participate in the proceeding because the outcome will directly affect them by requiring many to upgrade their technology and change some of their operational practices," blogged the Cooley law firm. "Businesses that send out automatic text messages to consumers may be affected if the technology or methods used to deliver these messages is restricted or banned."

Open radio access networks and network disaggregation are driving the need for automation, said Ruth Brown, Heavy Reading principal analyst-mobile networks and 5G, during a Light Reading webinar Tuesday. “Disaggregation has happened in all areas across the 5G networks,” she said: “We’re able to avoid vendor lock-in,” Brown said. “We’re able to share network resources, and also it supports a lot of flexibility.” Network slicing, which allows carriers to create multiple unique logical and virtualized networks within their network, requires built-in automation, Brown said. “We want to allow an operator to rapidly provision a network slice, to be able to configure this network slice and to be able to adapt as we get fluctuating demands,” she said. Automation is also more important for edge networks, she said. Automation “would allow people to place applications or functions in the correct locations at the edge of the network,” she said. The benefits of virtualization emerge only when the radio access network is virtualized, said Sandeep Sharma, global head-5G/RAN/ORAN at India-based Tech Mahindra. “We see more and more use cases getting automated in an open environment,” he said. ORAN and cloud technologies are well-developed, but the biggest challenge is a “lack of understanding” among providers, he said. Open networks are complex and automation is “a must to have to achieve all the efficiencies,” he said. Telcos are looking for cost savings and flexibility as they consider ORAN and moving more operations to the cloud, said Srihari Mallavarapu, Intel ecosystem development leader. Carriers “believe that by bringing in more players” it will help them cut costs, he said. With current networks making any changes “takes a long time -- they can’t do much innovation,” he said. ORAN requires automation, since the network itself is disaggregated, with hardware separate from software and multiple vendors involved, Mallavarapu said. Managing the network manually “will cause lots of trouble, and it’s almost impossible,” he said.

The National Public Safety Telecommunications Council urged the FCC to act soon to renew the FirstNet Authority’s band 14 license. The group said it takes no stand on issues raised by the National Sheriffs Association and the Major Cities Chiefs Association (see 2209070059) and 2208250056) and “to the extent the Commission decides to pursue those issues” that shouldn’t delay renewal. The license “will expire in mid-November, just slightly over a month away,” said a filing posted Tuesday in docket 12-94: “NPSTC believes the significant work accomplished to date to stand up the [network], and the resulting broadband service utilizing Band 14, are both too important to the public safety community to let the license lapse.”

The FCC should reject a push by the aviation industry asking the agency to consider tweaks to its rules to protect radio altimeters from C-band interference (see 2210060022), consultant Preston Padden said in comments posted Tuesday in docket 22-137. “The proposal by the aviation community to codify the voluntary and temporary restrictions on C-Band usage graciously indulged by AT&T and Verizon is the most outrageous proposition I have seen in 50 years of following FCC matters (and I have seen some doozies -- maybe even filed one or two myself)!” Padden said: “The FCC must just say ‘no.’” Padden formerly worked for the C-Band Alliance but noted he has no financial interests in the proceeding. “AT&T/Verizon bought those spectrum usage rights from the U.S. Government for $82 Billion with absolutely no prior notice of possible restrictions related to altimeter spectrum located hundreds of MHz away,” he said.

Energous hailed ITU recommendation ITU-R SM.2151-0, which includes an approval and recommendation for the 900 MHz frequency band for wireless power transfer for the wireless charging of devices such as sensors, smart tags, asset trackers and other IoT applications. The September ITU recommendation, posted Monday, is significant for Energous’ WattUp PowerBridges, which transmit power at the 915 MHz band, Energous said, calling it a “step forward” for Energous for the deployment of global active harvesting wireless power networks running at 900 MHz.

GSMA expects eight more 5G launches this year, with 5G networks hitting 420 worldwide by 2025, said Julie Ssali, senior analyst at GSMA Intelligence, during a Mobile World Live webinar Monday. Ssali warned that most of the networks are built on top of an older-generation core. There are 218 operators offering 5G in 81 markets, but GSMA counts only 27 5G stand-alone networks, she said. “The one key value to growth in this market is the deployment of 5G stand-alone networks,” she said. The biggest shift GSMA sees is toward edge computing, which does require 5G stand-alone to really see the benefits for business customers, including “advantage functionalities,” she said. Most stand-alone networks are being built in the Asia-Pacific region, she said. Rising inflation and lower expected growth are having an big effect, with some carriers holding back on 5G deployments “until there’s more stability within the economy,” she said.

The Fixed Wireless Communications Coalition opposed Encina Communications’ proposal to use Part 101 frequency coordination procedures as an alternative to automated frequency coordination (AFC) in the 6 GHz band (see 2209060034), in an FCC filing posted Tuesday in docket 18-295. “Encina’s request now incorrectly suggests its proposal enjoys wide support,” the coalition said: “Encina’s characterization ignores the Commission’s own rejection of Encina’s inclusion zone proposal and opposition to its repetitive Part 101 proposals from licensed and unlicensed 6 GHz stakeholders alike.”

Capgemini Engineering, Radisys and Mavenir Systems each won $250,000 for developing a fully integrated multivendor end-to-end 5G network as part of the government's 5G challenge, DOD and NTIA said. The goal of the challenge's stage three was “to build upon stage two results and integrate multiple vendor subsystems into an end-to-end network,” said a Thursday news release. “Through the 5G Challenge and in partnership with industry, we look to develop a more secure supply chain and a robust U.S. industrial base capable of reinstating U.S. leadership in the development of trusted 5G infrastructure,” said Amanda Toman, director of the DOD 5G Transition Office.

The FCC Wireless Bureau and Office of Engineering created docket 22-352 for the draft notice of inquiry on the future of the 12.7-13.25 GHz band, said a notice in Friday’s Daily Digest. Commissioners will vote on the NOI at their Oct. 27 meeting (see 2210060062).