The FCC should move forward on a rule change that would speed the deployment of distributed antenna systems and other wireless facilities, said AT&T Vice President Tamara Preiss in a meeting with Louis Peraertz, aide to Commissioner Mignon Clyburn. Consumers, public safety and the government need more wireless broadband, Preiss said, according to a filing in docket 13-238 (http://bit.ly/110LOvp). “Although spectrum is a critical input to meet this demand, spectrum alone is not sufficient,” AT&T said. “Providers must squeeze more capacity out of their spectrum resources by deploying new or improved infrastructure such as small cells and DAS facilities.” Among topics Preiss said she discussed were AT&T’s support for a Verizon proposal to exclude from historic preservation review small antenna at historic structures where similar wireless facilities are already in place. The FCC is tentatively scheduled to vote at Friday’s commissioner meeting on a wireless infrastructure order (CD Oct 8 p6). Mobile Future, meanwhile, filed comments at the FCC Friday supporting the FCC proposal. “The changes proposed by the Commission would help foster investment and innovation in our wireless networks and support the rising consumer demand that has been a hallmark of the mobile industry,” the group said. “Consumer access to high-speed wireless broadband depends on resilient infrastructure that supports those services.”
The FCC Wireless Bureau approved a settlement Friday between Colorado CallComm and Snapping Shoals Electric Membership Corp. over call sign WPMI283. Colorado CallComm has agreed to modify its license for the call sign to eliminate two locations, while Snapping Shoals has agreed to dismiss its petition on the call sign, the Wireless Bureau said. Snapping Shoals’ petition sought FCC cancellation of Colorado CallComm’s authority to operate on channels 938/899.9875, 939/900.000, 939/900.9125, and 939/900.9250 MHz in the Atlanta area, which are associated with Locations 6 and 7 of the WPMI283 call sign. Colorado CallComm will submit an application to modify its license to delete Locations 6 and 7 from the call sign in the FCC’s Universal Licensing System, the Wireless Bureau said (http://fcc.us/ZiZNv9).
The FCC Wireless Bureau said it plans to move to all-electronic authorizations and registrations in the agency’s Universal Licensing System (ULS) and Antenna Structure Registration (ASR) System. The FCC plans to stop mailing paper copies of current authorizations to licensees and registrants “unless it is notified that the licensee or registrant wishes to continue receiving official authorizations on paper,” the bureau said in a Friday public notice (http://bit.ly/1snpUxT). If most licensees choose electronic delivery, the commission could save nearly $304,000 a year, the bureau said in docket 14-161. The option to receive electronic delivery is available now for those ready to make the switch; early next year, it will become the default option. “We deem the electronic version of an authorization stored in ULS or the ASR System as the official Commission document,” the bureau said. The FCC sought comment on its proposals for the change, which are due at the agency Nov. 10.
The FCC Wireless Bureau approved a request from Copper Valley Wireless that it not be required to submit a separate letter of credit (LOC) for each of its 11 winning bids in the FCC’s Tribal Mobility Fund Phase I auction. The areas involved are all in Alaska, said the Thursday order (http://bit.ly/1CYGnuP). “Specifically, we allow Copper Valley to submit one irrevocable stand-by LOC with its longform application for Tribal Mobility Fund Phase I support covering all 11 of Copper Valley’s winning bid areas.”
The FCC Wireless Bureau is on the right path in proposing to modernize and streamline the rules for cellular licenses in the 800 MHz band, said Jeanine Poltronieri, AT&T assistant vice president-federal regulatory, Thursday in a blog post. “We're pleased that the proposal currently before the Commission will streamline the 800 MHz rules and make the transition from site-by-site to geographic area licensing,” she said (http://bit.ly/1uH9LDl). “And while some vestiges of site-by-site licensing may still remain in the proposal, those are to be expected when moving from such a complex, 30-year-old licensing regime."
Various public interest groups, joined by Sprint and T-Mobile, asked the FCC to do a thorough review of various proposed AT&T spectrum purchases now before the agency. The Thursday letter, to all FCC members, cited proposed buys of low-band spectrum licenses from Club 42 and Plateau Communications. The letter said AT&T has been active in the secondary spectrum market. “Permitting AT&T, already the largest competitor in most of these markets, to purchase this low-band spectrum would deny competitors the opportunity to enter or expand services in the market and result in further concentration of market share in the affected geographic areas,” the letter said. Concerns are growing, it said. “As available low-band spectrum is highly concentrated, secondary market transactions will become an increasingly important avenue for competitive carriers to acquire low-band spectrum.” Among groups signing on were Comptel, the Computer & Communications Industry Association, Free Press, New America Foundation and Public Knowledge. “AT&T is confident that after a careful, enhanced factor review, the bureau will conclude that both of these small deals will cause no harm to competition and will result in significant public interest benefits,” AT&T said in response to the letter.
The FCC Public Safety Bureau gave Iowa an extra year to meet an interim “substantial service” requirement as it builds out a public safety network using 700 MHz spectrum. The FCC imposed the requirement to assure that spectrum dedicated to public safety after the 2009 DTV transition would be used as planned, the bureau said in a Wednesday order (http://bit.ly/1vOW6s6). The original deadline was June 13, but Iowa asked for an extension and the bureau agreed to give it one, until June 13, 2015. The order said the Iowa system is contingent on funding from the state legislature, which is not in session again until January. “Given Iowa’s efforts to realize its intention to make use of the state license, it would be premature to cancel Iowa’s state license at this time,” the bureau said.
There’s plenty of reason for the FCC to act on T-Mobile’s petition for changes to the May spectrum holdings order, T-Mobile said in reply comments. T-Mobile argued in an August reconsideration petition that the FCC went too far to accommodate AT&T and Verizon at the expense of challengers (http://bit.ly/1mFZ10O). T-Mobile also challenged the FCC’s decision to set aside spectrum for competitors only when the bids reach a still-to-be determined trigger amount, which guarantees the auction will fund FirstNet, pay the cost of relocating broadcasters and other expenses. “The Commission’s discussion regarding linking the spectrum reserve trigger to a MHz-POP price threshold is limited and mechanical, and not based on any record support,” said T-Mobile’s reply. “At a minimum, the Commission’s limited discussion of its decision to link the spectrum reserve trigger to the second MHz-POP-based reserve price falls far short of the requirement under well-settled principles of administrative law that the Commission ‘articulate a satisfactory explanation for’ its decision.” T-Mobile said events dictate the FCC reconsider the rules. No opponent of the recon petition “seriously contends that the Commission’s decision to warn against any transactions among the national carriers, or its decision to circulate an item preventing joint bidding among any of the national carriers, are events or circumstances that occurred before the public’s last opportunity to present arguments,” T-Mobile said.
The FCC should move forward on rules streamlining the approval process for wireless facilities, said PCIA President Jonathan Adelstein and others from the association in a meeting with FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler, said a filing posted Wednesday in docket 13-238. “Clear FCC rules in this proceeding will promote broadband deployment, encourage investment in upgraded wireless infrastructure, and improve service coverage, capacity, and quality for consumers,” the group said (http://bit.ly/1t3dYT7). PCIA also said there is a “historically high level of capital” being invested in broadband deployment.
U.S. wireless customers pay an average of more than 17 percent in combined federal, state and local taxes and fees on their cellphone bills, the Tax Foundation said Wednesday in a report. The federal tax rate is 5.82 percent, while the state tax rate averages about 11.23 percent, the Tax Foundation said. Washington state has the highest state tax rate on cellphone bills at 18.6 percent, while Oregon has the lowest at 1.76 percent. Baltimore, Chicago, New York and Omaha, Nebraska, all have effective tax rates of more than 25 percent on cellphone bills, the Tax Foundation said (http://bit.ly/1sckeFC).