The U.S. wireless industry invested nearly $35 billion in its networks last year, a record and the fourth straight year of increased capital spending, CTIA said in its annual report released Tuesday. “5G networks now cover over 315 million Americans, one-in-three American adults have a 5G device, and 5G is now the fastest-growing segment of the home broadband market,” CTIA said: “Wireless industry competition also helped keep prices low during a period of rampant inflation. While prices across industries are increasing, the cost of wireless decreased.” Mobile wireless data traffic increased to 53.4 trillion MBs and providers “have added nearly 70,000 active cell sites since the FCC and state legislators modernized key siting regulations,” the group said.

FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel has circulated for a vote by commissioners an NPRM seeking comment on rule revisions tied to the need of operators of unmanned aircraft systems for licensed spectrum, agency officials confirmed. The FCC has looked at the issue in the past. It initially took comment on use of the of 5030-5091 MHz band by drones in 2019, at the request of the Aerospace Industries Association (see 1912270039). Last year, the Wireless Bureau took additional comments as part of a record refresh (see 2110130044). The docket created, RM-11798, has been slow with only eight filings so far this year. In one of the most recent filings on the topic, Qualcomm urged the FCC to set aside 20 MHz in the band, “which drones will use to communicate directly with one another to coordinate safe and efficient flights and also for drones to broadcast Remote ID information in compliance with FAA regulations,” and two 20.5 MHz blocks “licensed exclusively to support network communications through which drones will communicate via cellular networks for Control and Non-Payload Communications.” The record “demonstrates that there is a range of UAS spectrum needs and reinforces the support for the Commission to take timely actions to meet those needs,” said Aviation Spectrum Resources.

The FCC sought comment Monday on T-Mobile requests to relinquish its eligible telecommunications carrier designations in Florida and Virginia (see 2209020047). Comments are due Sept. 27, replies Oct. 12, in docket 09-197.

The FCC shouldn’t provide further flexibility for unlicensed 6 GHz devices without a requirement for automated frequency coordination and there is no need for the FCC to address the issue quickly, AT&T said in a filing posted Monday in docket 18-295. AT&T said it disagreed with arguments by NCTA and CableLabs (see 2208160038). “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: “Instead of approving higher LPI power devices -- which evidence indicates will harm [fixed service] components of vital telecommunications networks, including Public Safety and Critical Infrastructure systems -- the Commission should opt for the more prudent path of gaining real world experience with how these types of … applications interact with FS microwave links using AFC. Requiring AFC control has no or little cost to manufacturers of LPI and VLP devices given technology developments that already offer multiple means of connecting unlicensed devices using AFC controls.” NAB also countered the NCTA filing. “NAB’s current proposal is to reserve just 55 MHz of the 6 GHz band exclusively for licensed mobile use until real-world data is available to justify the removal of such reservation,” broadcasters said: “This would effectively serve as a pilot program to test the coexistence of unlicensed operations and licensed mobile operations and address our ongoing concerns regarding the potential for harmful interference to licensed mobile operations in the 6 GHz band. Contrary to NCTA’s assertion, we ask neither for a permanent reservation of spectrum nor a wholesale review of unlicensed operations in the band in the future.”

The 12 GHz band is the final chunk of spectrum available for the FCC to reallocate in the near term for wireless use, but what the agency will do isn’t certain, New Street’s Blair Levin told investors in a Sunday note. “12 GHz is in play, with the game entering the final period,” he said: “The one spectrum issue that could be material to investors in the near term involves the 12 GHz band. … Over the summer, there was significant activity on the debate, but nothing that gives us a high level of conviction on which way the FCC will rule.” The FCC Office of Engineering and Technology is key player but unlikely to “support one side or the other 100%,” Levin said. “It is more likely to say something to the effect of the spectrum can be shared without material harm ‘if’ and then list a bunch of conditions. Then the question will be whether a terrestrial service is viable under those conditions.”

The FCC should use as a model the 3rd Generation Partnership Project's adjacent channel rejection standard, which requires wireless receivers “to reject signals on adjacent channels even if they are stronger than the primary signal,” consultant Preston Padden said in a filing Friday in docket 22-137, the FCC receiver performance docket. “Given the plethora of wireless allocations, our entire system of wireless communications would not be possible without this requirement,” he said: “As spectrum becomes more scarce and demand continues to increase, the FCC must adopt strict receiver standards -- not compromise half-measures.”

Intel and Broadcom demonstrated Wi-Fi 7 at over-the-air speeds of more than 5 Gbps, they said Thursday. The trial used an Intel Core processor-based laptop with Wi-Fi 7 connected to a Broadcom Wi-Fi 7 access point. The companies called Wi-Fi 7 the platform for "the next 10 years of wireless experiences" requiring higher speeds, lower latency, improved reliability and greater capacity. The next-generation Wi-Fi standard uses wider 320 MHz channels in unlicensed 6 GHz spectrum, higher order 4K QAM data modulation, simultaneous connections across multiple bands with multilink operation and improved channel utilization efficiency with multiresource unit puncturing, they said. Wi-Fi 7 will enable new product classes, including augmented and virtual reality, “ultra-high-definition” 16K media streaming and more responsive and reliable gaming, while supporting large numbers of connected devices on the network, they said.

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit Thursday rejected a petition for rehearing of its decision upholding the FCC’s 5.9 GHz order (see 2208120035), filed by Amateur Radio Emergency Data Network (AREDN). The group said in its petition that the FCC was wrong in overriding the authority of the transportation secretary. “The Opinion overlooks that FCC’s rulemaking authority is conditional and discretionary, while the Secretary’s is unconditional and mandatory,” AREDN said: “The Secretary’s authority takes precedence in any inconsistency. The Opinion overlooks that the FCC did not give a good reason for changing policy. The Order suggests that change was because the dedicated short-range communication service had not been deployed. However, the Order omits to acknowledge that the FCC itself made deployment difficult or impossible.”

Mobi workers formed a union with the Communications Workers of America after the Hawaii-based wireless carrier voluntarily recognized the union, CWA said Tuesday. “The Mobi workers union is wall-to-wall, representing all 36 frontline and digital workers at the for-profit telecommunications company, including its retail store workers on O’ahu, customer service representatives, and tech workers,” CWA said.

T-Mobile said Wednesday it expanded the footprint of its 5G Home Internet service in Connecticut, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York and Pennsylvania “where more than three million households still have no access to home broadband.” More than 9 million homes in the region are now eligible for the service, the carrier said.