Representatives of the Bluetooth Special Interest Group (SIG) completed a series of meetings at the FCC on the group’s push to use the 6 GHz band (see 2305260032), said a filing posted Friday in docket 18-295. SIG members met last week with Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel, Commissioners Brendan Carr and Geoffrey Starks, an aide to Commissioner Nathan Simington and staff from the Office of Engineering and Technology. They earlier met with Commissioner Anna Gomez (see 2310260030). SIG members “elaborated on the wide range of applications for Bluetooth technology, from wireless audio to connected consumer electronics, glucose monitors, and hearing aids,” the filing said: “They highlighted the importance of accessing the 6 GHz spectrum as a means to support and expand the technology and explained that their members are part of a cross-license patent agreement, which allows them to focus and spend their resources on growth and development.”
A declaratory ruling clarifying that the use of Wi-Fi on school buses is an educational purpose and eligible for E-rate funding, posted in Thursday’s Daily Digest, addresses objections by Commissioner Nathan Simington that the ruling was an “unlawful course of action.” Simington and Commissioner Brendan Carr dissented on the ruling, approved 3-2 last week (see 2310190056|). The commission added additional text clarifying its authority to make the change. “Accordingly, section 254(h)(1)(B) of the Communications Act authorizes the Commission to support the provision of communications services, including broadband, to schools and libraries for educational purposes, and this Declaratory Ruling fits squarely within that authority,” the final order says. The final version further clarifies commission authority in a new footnote. “Section 254(h)(1)(B) does not contain any reference to ‘classrooms,’ and thus the dissenters’ concerns that section 254(h)(2)(A) is limited to ‘access to advanced . . . services for . . . classrooms,’ are inapposite,” the footnote says: “Nevertheless, we also note that Congress declined to define ‘classrooms’ for this purpose, and recent history has shown that in today’s world, teaching and learning often occur outside of brick and mortar school buildings and thus ‘classroom’ may be interpreted more broadly.” The commission found that “the use of Wi-Fi on school buses to aid the many students who lack robust internet access at home similarly enhances eligible schools’ and libraries’ access to advanced telecommunications and information services.” The ruling includes written statements by the five commissioners.
T-Mobile withdrew a petition asking the FCC to deny MatrixSpace's petition for waiver of the U.S. table of frequency allocations and the commission’s Part 87 rules for radars mounted on drones that could provide radionavigation or radiolocation in the 24.45-24.65 GHz band (see 2307270026). T-Mobile said it’s dropping its complaint after MatrixSpace agreed to abide by the same restrictions as Echodyne (see 1906130051). “Predictive modeling cannot rule out the possibility that MatrixSpace’s proposed DopplerSpace MS01100 radar operations will cause harmful interference to primary users in the future, particularly to licensees like T-Mobile in the immediately adjacent band at 24.45 GHz,” said a filing Wednesday in docket 23-216. “Based on T-Mobile’s calculations, MatrixSpace’s operations are capable of causing harmful interference to T-Mobile customers in certain deployment scenarios,” T-Mobile said: “Notwithstanding these concerns, T-Mobile believes it can manage the interference risk that MatrixSpace’s operations will create based on the company’s commitments submitted on the record in this proceeding.”
Representatives of the Bluetooth Special Interest Group (SIG) met with FCC Commissioner Anna Gomez on the group’s push to use the 6 GHz band (see 2305260032). They “explained that they need access to the 6 GHz spectrum because the 2.4 GHz band -- which they currently use -- will not support this growth in their technologies,” said a filing posted Thursday in docket 18-295. In response to questions from Gomez, SIG members “explained that the proposed framework does not currently provide for a narrow band service,” the filing said: The representatives “said they plan to move into the 5.8 GHz band, but it is insufficient to meet their needs for narrow band service and is not recognized on a global basis. They are working with the Wi-Fi industry to ensure that what they do works for them, as well as with U.S. and European regulators.”
The Illinois State Toll Highway Authority sought a waiver allowing early cellular vehicle-to-everything deployments in the 5.9 GHz band. The authority said it’s willing to abide by restrictions approved as part of a joint waiver order released in April (see 2304240066), per a Wednesday filing in docket 19-138.
The FCC Office of Engineering and Technology Wednesday extended by 15 days the deadlines for challenges to Comsearch and Federated Wireless public trial testing of their automated frequency coordination (AFC) systems that will manage access to the 6 GHz band. The Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI) had asked for a 30-day extension (see 2310180053). “According to EPRI, it submitted a large number of test vectors to the common test portal prior to the beginning of the public trial period and did not receive the revised test results until a month after the public trial period had commenced for the two AFC applicants,” OET said: “EPRI is not requesting a time extension to establish an iterative process to make multiple challenges to the test responses as the Wi-Fi Alliance claims. Instead, EPRI is requesting additional time to perform an analysis of the revised test results which it received after a delay.”
Open radio access network supporters told the FCC the proposed 5G Fund should be seen as an opportunity to encourage the deployment of open networks, per comments posted this week in docket 20-32 (see 2310240046). The 5G Fund “presents a unique and critical opportunity for the FCC to reinvigorate U.S. technological leadership with Open RAN deployments using open and interoperable interfaces,” said Mavenir. ORAN is “ready for the U.S. market today,” already being deployed by Dish Network and Triangle Communications “and thus should be a key part of 5G Fund deployments given its cost savings and improved security benefits,” the ORAN company said. “The competitive, security, and innovation-related advantages of Open RAN are widely recognized, and DISH’s successful nationwide Open RAN deployment demonstrates that these benefits are not merely theoretical: they are being realized each day in the field,” Dish said. The FCC should use the 5G Fund to encourage the deployment of ORAN technologies, said US Ignite. ORAN “has the potential to bolster U.S. leadership in wireless technology, bolster the domestic telecommunications supply chain, and enhance national security,” US Ignite said: “Despite telecom networks being critical to our national security and economic development, there are no large U.S. radio equipment vendors in the marketplace, with only a handful of European and Asian vendors able to provide at-scale deployment of 5G networks globally.” ORAN is “poised to promote wireless network security while driving innovation, lowering costs, increasing vendor diversity and supply chain robustness, and enabling more flexible network architectures,” said the ARA Platform for Advanced Wireless Research at Iowa State University. ORAN is “of particular interest to rural America, not only because it can potentially reduce cost and thus is consistent with the Commission’s objective to efficiently and effectively distribute finite universal service support, but also because it reduces barrier[s] to innovation and can enable rural-focused wireless technology development and deployment,” ARA said.
U.S. District Judge Timothy Kelly for the District of Columbia agreed to give Dish Network additional time to buy 800 MHz licenses from T-Mobile, accepting a motion filed last week by the two companies and the DOJ (see 2310190010). Kelly granted the consent motion, “with no party to this action opposing the requested relief," said his signed order Monday (docket 1:19-cv-02232). The option to buy the licenses was part of a series of agreements tied to T-Mobile’s buy of Sprint, aimed at helping Dish emerge as fourth national wireless provider essentially replacing Sprint (see 2308170065). Dish missed an August deadline to buy the licenses and asked for an extension until June 30. The new deadline is April 1. Dish also agreed to pay T-Mobile a $100 million extension fee.
The FCC should reject the Electric Power Research Institute's request to extend by 30 days the deadline to file challenges to ongoing public trials of the automated frequency coordination (AFC) systems that will manage access to the 6 GHz band (see 2310180053), the Wi-Fi Alliance said. FCC rules “state that ‘[i]t is the policy of the Commission that extensions of time shall not be routinely granted,’” said a filing posted Tuesday in docket 21-352. “EPRI fails to provide any facts or circumstances that require the Commission to deviate from its policy in this case,” the alliance said: “To the contrary, the Commission routinely denies requests for extension of time when, as here, the requesting party is simply dissatisfied with the amount of time permitted for a required action.”
The FCC’s USF program is in need of “substantial reform,” the Rural Wireless Association said in comments posted Monday in docket 10-90. RWA opposes picking winners through the use of reverse auctions. “In support of the FCC’s universal service goals, the Commission should expeditiously … transition high-cost support for fixed broadband to ongoing support to maintain networks that are deployed with funds from the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act and other federal and state grant programs; and … develop a model-based support mechanism for mobile networks,” RWA said.