The FCC should “act swiftly to authorize 5G operations” in the 12 GHz band, RS Access representatives said in a call with an aide to FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel. “The engineering record is now complete with respect to the feasibility of 5G-[non-geostationary orbit] coexistence, and the Commission has the opportunity for a win/win whereby the 12 GHz band is unlocked for massive 5G opportunities while allowing for NGSO co-existence,” said a filing posted Tuesday in docket 20-443.

GSMA and FC Barcelona signed an agreement Monday to collocate the Sports Tomorrow Congress at Mobile World Congress in Barcelona starting next year. “As data-powered, innovative sports technology continues to deliver insights with a profound impact on athletes’ performance and fan engagement, the relationship between sports and technology has expanded the sports industry market,” said a news release.

Qualcomm Technologies bought Cellwize, a Singapore-based mobile network automation and management company, with the goal of speeding 5G adoption, it said Monday. Transaction terms weren’t disclosed. Adding Cellwize’s radio access network software to the Qualcomm portfolio “will accelerate the development of the connected intelligent edge through the deployment of 5G private and public networks by reducing network deployment time and simplifying network management,” said Qualcomm.

Executives from Helium and cryptocurrency company Emrit predicted a bright future for decentralized wireless networks, during a webinar Monday. Helium’s centrally managed IoT network offers more than 800,000 IoT gateways in some 52,000 cities around the world. Speakers said PlanetWatch, Dimo and Pollen are offering similar networks. “It’s commercial hardware,” said Alvaro Gracia, partner, Helium Funds at Borderless Capital. “There’s no real estate costs because people are placing them on their premises,” he said: “The blockchain automation makes the whole backend model very efficient -- you don’t need accounting departments, you don’t need a lot of processes.” Helium and similar companies are addressing “a problem that the IoT industry has tried to solve for a very long time,” said Pradhyum Ramkumar, Emrit head-IoT and 5G. Sensor data usage on the Helium network is growing 70% every month, he said: “The proof is in the pudding.” People are "finally realizing that there is a great, very low cost [long range] network available,” he said. “Very little capital was deployed by Helium to do this” with the costs paid by hosts, who are reimbursed by users, he said. Helium “laid the groundwork,” being followed by competitors, said Ryan Derouin, Emrit head-commercial. One example of the kind of network being built is a local coffee shop using citizens broadband radio spectrum, he said. “People need data, they’re in there streaming data … and they need the access,” he said. “The coffee shops want to drive traffic.” Carriers “can’t put a tower every 50 feet” as the demand for data grows, he said.

Applications to bid in the 2.5 GHz auction by AT&T, Dish Network, T-Mobile and UScellular were deemed to be complete (see 2206090073).

Two people outside the U.S. Capitol Jan. 6 asked U.S. District Court for Eastern Pennsylvania to enjoin T-Mobile from sharing their data with Congress under a subpoena. Congress sought information about Kristina Malimon’s and Yevgeniya Malimon’s “accounts, contacts, personal and political associates, and physical locations” over “a three-month period that greatly exceeds the less than 10-minute window of time Plaintiffs were engaging in peaceable assembly … before being arrested,” said the Thursday complaint. “The subpoena was not issued by a validly constituted committee; is not pertinent to the matter Congress is purporting to investigate; does not pursue a legislative purpose; violates the Plaintiffs’ First and Fourth Amendment rights; and violates the Stored Communications Act,” said the Malimons, of Portland, Oregon.

CTA representatives told the FCC of “the importance of spectrum efficiency,” in response to the FCC’s April notice of inquiry on receiver performance (see 2204210049). CTA said it opposes a “one-size-fits all” approach. “Industry (and CTA specifically) has explored spectrum efficiencies across a variety of vectors -- including receiver performance -- over the years, especially in the FCC’s Technological Advisory Committee,” said a filing posted Friday in docket 22-137. “Industry has been working for many years to analyze system performance, write standards and design and test devices,” CTA said: “As part of this process, industry considers in-band and adjacent channel interference. Participants also discussed that an increasingly congested RF environment raises difficult questions for the Commission as it reallocates spectrum to support 5G services and beyond.” The CTA representatives spoke with aides to Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel and Commissioners Brendan Carr and Geoffrey Starks. Initial comments are due on the NOI June 27.

The State Department said it may pick a foreign service officer to be coordinator for international communications and information, the department’s point person in charge of communications policy, but that individual will have ambassador status, in a statement Friday. Former government and industry officials raised concerns the administration seemed intent on effectively downgrading the status of the position (see 2206070047). State had been silent. “The candidate selected for the position of Deputy Assistant Secretary (DAS) for International Information and Communications Policy (ICP) will serve concurrently as Coordinator for International Communications and Information Policy,” said a statement: The official “will hold the rank of Ambassador, pending Senate confirmation, and will represent the United States in high level diplomatic engagements,” the statement said: “As we search for the best person for this role, we are committed to an equitable and competitive hiring process, open to candidates from within the Department's Civil Service and Foreign Service ranks as well as to external candidates.”

Wireless ISPs urged NTIA to amend its definition of reliable broadband service unveiled last month for its broadband, equity, access and deployment program (see 2205130054) to allow for participation by WISPs. “It’s our view that the NTIA’s definition of Reliable Broadband Service excludes ISPs who are already providing reliable and dependable internet access to so-called unserved rural and non-urban areas,” said a Thursday statement coordinated by Preseem, a cloud-based platform for smaller ISPs: “As such, we believe the NTIA’s definition is unfair and inaccurate, and should be amended.” New WISP Association President David Zumwalt also criticized the definition. “WISPs provide dependable, resilient, reliable broadband to millions of Americans across the country, and have long served and excelled on the front lines of bringing broadband to unserved areas,” he said: “NTIA should clarify its guidance so that the objectives of the BEAD program can be truly achieved, and States provided with the flexibility they need to bring broadband to the unserved.”

Major industry players expected to play in the 2.5 GHz auction, which starts July 29, were on the list of bidders with complete applications to participate in the FCC’s next big 5G spectrum sale, the FCC said Thursday. AT&T, Dish Network, bidding as Carbonate Wireless, T-Mobile and UScellular are among the 39 with complete applications. Verizon put in an application, deemed incomplete, joining 53 bidders on that list. There appears to be more interest in this auction than in the 3.45 GHz sale, which had 42 applications, while the C-band auction had 74 applications filed. Smaller players are among the qualified bidders, with 17 seeking rural provider bidding credits and nine small business credits. Questions continue over the extent to which small players will jump in or T-Mobile will dominate the auction (see 2204140062). T-Mobile has a dominant position in the band since its buy of Sprint, and is using 2.5 GHz for its 5G rollout. “At first glance, the list of bidders for 2.5 GHz auction (whether qualified or not) does not reveal too many surprises,” emailed Sasha Javid, BitPath chief operating officer. “Submitting an application does not mean that Verizon or AT&T are necessarily interested in bidding for this spectrum,” he said: “It is a low-cost way to muddy the waters for bidders that are truly interested in acquiring the spectrum. If there is one initial takeaway, it is that this auction did not get as many prospective bidders as the [citizens broadband radio service] auction, which also featured smaller county-sized licenses.” The 2020 CBRS auction attracted 271 qualified bidders (see 2007200049). Those with complete short-form applications must submit upfront payments June 23, to be deemed qualified bidders. Others must resubmit their applications, and make an upfront payment, by the same date.