Federated Wireless answered questions from the FCC Office of Engineering and Technology on its bid to be an automated frequency coordination system operator in the 6 GHz band, but asked that many of the details be given confidential treatment, in a filing posted Thursday in docket 21-352. Federated said its proposed system is similar to one it operates in the citizens broadband radio service band. “The confidential information details the functioning of the Federated Wireless AFC in the 6 GHz Band, and Federated Wireless and other AFC operators will compete vigorously on the basis of the services provided through these products,” the company said.

Mavenir urged the FCC to adopt open and interoperable interfaces for radio access networks, disputing claims that agency action isn’t ripe. The FCC took comment on open RAN last year, with next steps unclear (see 2108270039). “Some of the comments and ex parte materials in the record wrongly suggest … that it would be premature for the Commission to act on open and interoperable RAN interfaces because they suggest that the technology is not ready for deployment and further testing and standards development are required,” Mavenir said in a filing posted Wednesday in docket 21-63. “This argument is circular and confuses the issue,” the company said: “Open interfaces and interoperability are concepts, not technologies to be developed; they are methods of creating and ensuring competition, and they are not associated with any specific technology or technical standard.” It would make no sense for the commission “to wait until after a market is competitive before requiring that it be competitive, at which point no requirement would be needed," Mavenir said.

The FCC Office of Engineering and Technology approved a waiver sought by Liberty Defense Holdings of Part 15 ultra-wideband rules to allow marketing and operation of its swept frequency UWB surveillance system. OET sought comment in July 2019 (see 1907250045) on the Hexwave system, which uses active 3D imaging “to detect weapons, explosives, and other threats using a UWB surveillance technology operating in the 6.0-10.6 GHz band.” OET said Wednesday the system will “protect Americans against threats in public venues and other high-traffic areas, in furtherance of the public interest, and that operation of this device under the specified waiver conditions poses no greater risk of causing harmful interference to communication services than those devices already permitted under the existing rules.”

The FCC’s Wireline Bureau gave itself an extra 45 days to act on applications in an FCC program to cover the cost of ripping and replacing Huawei and ZTE gear from wireless networks. The new deadline is June 15. The FCC said last week applicants requested $5.6 billion, nearly three times the $1.9 billion allocated (see 2202040066). The bureau said Wednesday it received 181 applications and 162 of those were found to be eligible and acceptable for filing. The applications cover the disposal of “approximately 24,000 units of covered communications equipment and services across approximately 8,400 … locations,” a notice said. The bureau said it needs more time “given the number and complexity of the applications filed.”

Acconeer urged the FCC to “move quickly” on revised rules for short-range radars in the 60 GHz band, the topic of a July NPRM (see 2107130066). CEO Lars Lindell and others from the company spoke with Office of Engineering and Technology staff, said a filing posted Wednesday in docket 21-48. “Acconeer emphasized the great and growing demand by customers to use its 60 GHz sensor for use cases beyond what waivers presently allow,” the company said.

The COVID-19 pandemic put more pressure on Wi-Fi to grow quickly, but expanding home and business networks raised complications for all users, speakers said at the Fierce Wi-Fi Summit Tuesday. “The pandemic has just put pressure points on areas that we didn’t even realize we would have pressure points,” said Patricia Kellaghan, senior director-products at Breezeline, which offers a managed Wi-Fi service. “We’ve had these massive lifestyle shifts, and they’re not temporary, they’re going to be permanent, and they’re going to continue to evolve,” she said. Customers are demanding better in-home connectivity, she said. “We really need key, strategic, forward-leaning partners who are pushing on the product road map so we can continue to keep up with demand and stay relevant,” she said. Breezeline had to move to more self-installation by customers, she said. Its products “have to be easy to use, they have to be easy to install, they have to put control in the customers’ hands,” she said. “The pandemic certainly has accelerated our deployment,” said Richard Squire, Liberty Global director-connectivity strategy. The company had a 30%-40% jump in connected devices when the pandemic started two years ago, he said. Wi-Fi needs to be simple for customers, he said: “This is really complex stuff, and ... we want to make it as simple as possible for our customers to use.” Because of regulatory and technical limits, no single access point (AP), “no matter how strong,” can cover the whole of many homes, said Bill McFarland, chief technology officer at gear-maker Plume. That means most need Wi-Fi extenders, but that “greatly complicates the problem of Wi-Fi management,” he said. “We need to make decisions about the frequency channels and channel bandwidths that will be used, how the APs will be connected to each other, which is effectively the routes and topologies, and to which AP and which on frequency band each client device in the home should connect,” he said: The Wi-Fi system needs to consider traffic loads, signal strengths, data rates, interference and the effect of Wi-Fi congestion.

T-Mobile has spent the past 18 months beefing up its 5G network in Los Angeles for Sunday’s Super Bowl, the carrier said Tuesday. “With a more than $100 million investment in 5G infrastructure across the city, more than 95% of people in Greater Los Angeles are now covered” by T-Mobile’s 5G network, the carrier said. T-Mobile said it upgraded or installed hundreds of 5G macro sites and small cells, and made 5G upgrades at Los Angeles International Airport and “enhancements at numerous other venues.” The system at SoFi Stadium has the capacity of nearly 100 traditional macro cellsites, T-Mobile said.

The FCC Wireless Bureau notified tower builders about a recent change in the definition of the “waters of the United States” (WOTUS) provision of the Clean Water Act that could affect all towers requiring CWA permits. In August, the U.S. District Court for the District of Arizona vacated the navigable waters protection rule (NWPR) and remanded it to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and Environmental Protection Agency, said a Tuesday notice. Both agencies halted application of the NWPR in early September and have been interpreting the WOTUS provision consistent with the pre-2015 WOTUS regulatory regime, the bureau said. “The Corps has announced that it does not intend to reconsider permit decisions that relied on the NWPR before the Court’s vacatur,” the bureau said: “While previously granted permits thus remain valid, tower builders should be aware that the Corps will not rely on a NWPR [approved jurisdictional determination] in evaluating pending or future permit requests.” The notice advised tower builders to contact the Corps “to ascertain the potential implications of the revised WOTUS definition on permitting and environmental compliance obligations for their proposed facility.”

Public Knowledge urged the FCC to consider delaying AT&T’s Feb. 22 3G shutdown because alarm companies faced delays replacing equipment due to the COVID-19 pandemic and chip shortages that were beyond anyone's control (see 2202030042), in a call with an aide to Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel. The FCC should be prepared to issue an order halting the sunset, unless “AT&T can demonstrate either: (a) that it has made arrangements with the alarm industry to prevent disruption of critical services identified in the record, such as home medical alert systems, DUI monitoring systems, home confinement alarms, and other systems necessary to protect life and safety; or, (b) AT&T is capable of immediately restoring service in the event of a significant disruption to these systems critical to protecting safety of life and property,” said a filing posted Tuesday in docket 21-304. Unlike flight safety concerns that led to the C-band delay “here, the alarm industry has been delayed by circumstances genuinely beyond their control,” PK said. PK Senior Vice President Harold Feld emailed that he’s not sure whether the FCC will act. “It is clear the Republican offices do not feel the need to act, which makes it more difficult for the Chair in a 2-2 Commission,” he said. A delay would “force us to devote scarce spectrum resources to support relatively few, obsolete 3G-only devices rather than repurposing the spectrum to enhance 5G capacity,” an AT&T spokesperson emailed: “Forcing a delay would needlessly waste valuable spectrum resources and degrade network performance for millions of our customers.”

Federal prosecutors allege that China’s Hytera Communications recruited and hired Motorola Solutions employees to steal trade secrets from Motorola. An indictment was partially unsealed in U.S. District Court in Chicago. “As alleged, from 2007 to 2020, Hytera and the recruited employees used Motorola’s proprietary and trade secret information to accelerate the development of Hytera’s [digital mobile radio] products, train Hytera employees, and market and sell Hytera’s DMR products throughout the world,” DOJ said Monday: “Hytera paid the recruited employees higher salaries and benefits than what they received at Motorola.” Hytera didn’t comment. The company faces a potential criminal fine of three times the value of the stolen technology “including expenses for research, design, and other costs that it avoided,” DOJ said.