Members of the recently formed Coalition for Emergency Response and Critical Infrastructure (CERCI) slammed a recent filing by the Public Safety Spectrum Alliance (PSSA) on the future of the 4.9 GHz band. “By claiming that CERCI is ‘a thinly veiled attempt by commercial interests to hijack the 4.9 GHz band,’ PSSA devalues the role of our law enforcement organizations as members actively engaged with CERCI and seeks to undercut our support of continued local-public safety use and control of the 4.9 GHz band, including control over the decision of whether to lease access to non-interfering, compatible, critical-infrastructure industry users,” said a filing posted Wednesday in docket 07-100. The Major Cities Chiefs Association, the National Sheriffs’ Association and the National Association of Women Law Enforcement Executives signed the filing. “In contrast to CERCI’s substantial public-safety support, PSSA has not identified any current public-safety officials or associations as members or any members at all,” the groups said. CERCI launched in November (see 2311160052).
Samsung Electronics told the FCC a cyber trust mark program for IoT devices should be voluntary, “industry-led, transparent and evolving.” The program “should leverage IoT security standards that are risk-based as well as regularly and easily updatable to keep pace with evolving threats, technologies, and techniques,” Samsung told Public Safety Bureau staff, according to a filing posted Wednesday in docket 23-239. The program should also “start with IoT devices, rather than products,” Samsung said: “Samsung agrees with the weight of the record that focusing the Program initially on devices will enable the FCC to implement the Program with speed and efficiency, while allowing stakeholders time to develop an approach to more complex IoT products.” LG Electronics reported a call with an aide to Commissioner Brendan Carr. “The success of the program will rely as much on branding, marketing, and consumer education as on regulation, compliance, and enforcement,” LG said: “The Commission should seek to maximize device manufacturer participation in the program, and should minimize administrative burdens or program infrastructure obligations that will deter participation while offering little corresponding consumer value.”
FirstNet has “confirmed and validated” completion of the initial five-year build of the public safety network, AT&T and FirstNet said in a joint release Wednesday. “The initial build of the FirstNet network was done on time, on budget and on task,” FirstNet Authority Chair Richard Carrizzo said. “Through our public-private partnership -- and close collaboration with the public safety community across the country -- we have achieved many milestones, with completion of the initial phase of buildout of FirstNet representing a defining accomplishment,” the release said. The network includes more than 1,000 “purpose-built” cellsites where state and public safety stakeholders identified a coverage need, they said. The network covers more than 2.91 million square miles, which is 250,000 square miles more than any commercial network, the release said.
The FCC Office of Engineering Tuesday approved a request by Continental Automotive for a waiver of agency rules to allow authorization of a tire pressure monitoring system (TPMS) operating in the 315 MHz and 433 MHz bands. OET sought comment last year (see 2210310064). “As designed, Continental’s new TPMS would have limited proliferation and would not have a high potential for causing harmful interference to the authorized services in the bands,” OET said in docket 22-382: “The narrow relief we are providing will permit the deployment of innovative unlicensed applications that offer significant benefits to the public without increasing significant potential interference to authorized users in the band.”
Dish Network “reiterated the urgent need” for the FCC to issue an NPRM updating its mobile spectrum holding policies, the company said in meetings with agency staff. “DISH described how the majority of spectrum is controlled by nationwide incumbents, leaving new competitors and regional carriers constrained in their ability to provide wireless services,” a filing posted Tuesday in docket 23-319 said. “This excessive concentration hampers innovation, raises prices, raises costs for non-incumbent competitors, including DISH, and harms consumers,” Dish said. The FCC recently took comment on whether to reexamine aggregation limits (see 2311090051). In addition, Dish raised questions about T-Mobile’s proposed buy of Mint Mobile (see 2303150032). “While this transaction does not involve spectrum accumulation, T-Mobile’s network is an important input for virtually every [mobile virtual network operator] in the nation, including DISH, just as spectrum is for any facilities-based carrier,” Dish said: “The acquisition of another MVNO by T-Mobile increases T-Mobile’s incentive to discriminate against the remaining independent MVNOs.”
5G Automotive Association representatives met with staff for FCC Commissioners Brendan Carr and Anna Gomez on a 2021 petition for partial reconsideration of an order reallocating the 5.9 GHz band (see 2107230033). The group noted that it raised one issue in the petition, protection for cellular vehicle-to-everything technologies against unwanted emissions from unlicensed services that share the band. 5GAA has “demonstrated in the record that with the emissions levels the Order adopted, C-V2X range would be significantly reduced (by more than 50%), delaying safety messages and unnecessarily undermining C-V2X effectiveness,” it said in a filing posted Tuesday in docket 19-138. The group also met with Office of Engineering and Technology staff.
The U.S. and other nations Monday called on the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) to develop common rules for civil aviation operations occurring in higher airspace. “Activity in higher airspace is poised to soar, with demand for applications as diverse as bringing 5G and 6G telecommunications to underserved communities, improving current Earth Observation capabilities, and enabling innovation in transportation of people and goods,” the nations' joint statement said: “Systems that ensure safety and security for the millions of flights occurring at lower altitudes are simply not in place for activity in higher airspace. Aircraft operating in higher airspace have vastly different performance characteristics and unconventional operational needs.” The statement urged ICAO to “prioritize and expedite higher airspace operations in its work program and to accelerate the development and implementation of solutions for manned and unmanned aviation traffic in higher airspace.” Canada, the EU and its member states, Japan and the U.K. signed the statement.
The continuing growth of 5G shows the need for policymakers to provide more spectrum for operators, 5G Americas said Monday. Worldwide 5G connections reached 1.6 billion in Q3, 71% growth over the past year, 5G Americas said. Omdia projects 1.8 billion by the end of 2023 and 7.9 billion by 2028, 5G Americas said. “The global 5G landscape shows positive momentum as innovation and collaboration continue to be the mainstays for long term progress,” said Chris Pearson, president of 5G Americas. With the World Radiocommunication Conference finished, “it is important that international cooperation and efforts continue to ensure that spectrum and technology standards continue to propel this growth,” he said.
The Wireless Broadband Alliance filed a report at the FCC on public tests of its 6 GHz automated frequency coordination (AFC) system. “This report demonstrates that WBA successfully completed the public testing of its AFC system,” said a Friday filing in docket 21-352: “Only one challenge was a valid concern and WBA has since corrected that in its AFC.” WBA said other challenges were tied to differences in testing methodologies.
FCC rules went into effect Friday for commercial mobile service providers that elected to participate in the wireless emergency alert message system in the 13 most commonly spoken languages in the U.S. as well as English and American Sign Language (see 2310190056), said a notice in Friday’s Federal Register.