NTIA extended the comment period until Sept. 7 on preliminary guidance about the grant process for alternative plans by states opting out of FirstNet, said a notice in Wednesday's Federal Register. July 19, NTIA sought comment on preliminary guidance about how an opt-out state may apply for authority to enter into a spectrum capacity lease with FirstNet and receive a grant to construct its radio access network (see 1607180052). Comments were initially due Aug. 18.

The FCC is examining AT&T’s proposed buy of a single lower 700 MHz C-block license from North Dakota Network, said documents the agency posted Wednesday. The license covers cellular market area 581, around Bottineau, North Dakota. “The Applicants assert that, as a result of this proposed transaction, AT&T would hold 24 megahertz of contiguous, paired Lower 700 MHz spectrum in the six counties involved in this transaction, which would allow for a 10×10 megahertz LTE deployment,” a public notice said. AT&T would hold 125-145 MHz of spectrum in total, including 55 MHz of below-1-GHz spectrum, in the six counties, requiring enhanced scrutiny under agency rules, the PN said. It established a pleading cycle: Petitions to deny are due Sept. 14, oppositions Sept. 21, replies Sept. 28.

Smart audio hardware revenue will jump from $1.4 billion this year to more than $5.5 billion by 2020, said a Juniper Research report. Amazon Echo and Google Home devices are projected to lead. Smartphones provide similar functions through accessories, limiting the need for separate and portable digital assistant devices, the researcher said Tuesday.

“Significant work” will be required “to marry the appeal of a unified early 5G standard with the longer term need to support diverse market requirements,” Strategy Analytics said in a Tuesday report. The research firm predicts 5G commercial handset sales will begin in 2020 and exceed 300 million by 2025. “The first commercial 5G handsets will appear in small numbers in 2020 in South Korea and Japan,” and additional markets, including the U.S., U.K., Sweden and China, will launch them a year later, the firm said. “By 2022 tens of millions of 5G handsets will be sold, and as a proportion of total handset sales will reach low single digit percentages.” The first “trial” 5G handsets in 2018 will have “teething problems,” such as short battery life and unstable connectivity, but “these issues will be largely resolved” by 2020, “though the first commercial 5G handsets will likely come with very high price tags,” it said.

Text messaging “remains a trusted … communications medium because text messaging providers, including carriers, have actively managed their platforms to protect consumers from spam or nuisance messages,” CTIA officials said in a meeting with FCC Wireless Bureau staff. The CTIA officials discussed the efforts of the group’s Messaging Working Group (MWG) to develop guidelines and best practices enabling consumers and businesses “to exchange messages with other consumers and enterprises, while investing all messaging stakeholders with the responsibility to protect consumers from unwanted or harmful traffic,” the filing said. “CTIA described the MWG’s progress in crafting safeguards to protect against spam, including efforts to develop mechanisms for blocking abusive or unwanted messages, consumer reporting, communication among service providers, and identifying repeat spam offenders.” Tom Power, CTIA general counsel, was among attendees. The filing was posted in docket 08-7.

The government should avoid one-size-fits-all rules and a “compliance mindset” on mobile security, CTIA said in a Department of Homeland Security filing. The group responded to a request for information from DHS and the Enterprise Mobility Program at the General Services Administration. “Security is a top industry priority,” CTIA said. “Industry is making significant investments, and the entire ecosystem works tirelessly to innovate and advance security.” As 5G and the IoT take off, “new approaches will emerge as industry aggressively innovates for security,” the association said. “Technology must advance at a very rapid pace … to address threats. Security needs often outpace standards bodies, as companies must monitor, protect, diagnose, and fight potential cyberattacks in real time.” CTIA said “flexibility and vigilance” are vital in a “changing threat landscape.”

The Rural Wireless Association urged the FCC to approve an annual mobility fund, providing “specific, predictable, and sufficient support to sustain and advance the availability of mobile voice and broadband services in high-cost areas.” Much work remains for rural America to see wireless connections comparable to those in other parts of the country, said RWA General Counsel Carri Bennet in a Tuesday news release. “Dedicated support to sustain and expand mobile voice and broadband services remains as critical as ever,” Bennet said. “Mobile voice and broadband services are critical to public safety communications and rural economic development, and can help address problems such as the ‘digital divide’ and ‘homework gap’ that remain present in rural America disadvantaging rural youth and degrading the quality of life for rural Americans.” The per customer capital and operating expenditures of rural carriers remain much higher than those of nationwide and regional carriers, RWA said.

Six wireless technology companies launched the CBRS Alliance to “develop, market and promote LTE-based solutions” in the new 3.5 GHz Citizens Broadband Radio Service band, they said Tuesday. The six companies are Access Technologies, Federated Wireless, Intel, Nokia, Qualcomm and Ruckus Wireless. “In February, the companies announced their commitment to build an ecosystem of industry participants and make LTE-based solutions in the CBRS band widely available,” said an alliance news release. “The Alliance will work towards LTE CBRS field trials in the second half of this year and is developing an official certification process towards successful deployments of CBRS infrastructure.” The FCC approved an experimental three-tiered access and sharing model made up of federal and nonfederal incumbents, priority access licenses and general authorized access users for the shared band (see 1608120057). The FCC still must approve the first spectrum access system administrators and environmental sensing capability operators that will make the complex sharing arrangement work.

Voxx will exclusively distribute the Striiv line of fitness and activity trackers in North America and Europe under a “strategic partnership” with the Redwood City, California, wearables supplier, the companies said in a Monday announcement. The agreement marks Voxx’s entry into the wearables space, estimated to be worth $34 billion globally by 2020, the announcement said. Striiv wearables, priced under $100, have sold through Striiv’s online store and through Amazon and Best Buy.

The FCC Wireless Bureau approved a rule change requested by the U.S. Coast Guard that passenger-carrying vessels required to carry VHF radiotelephone equipment with digital selective calling (DSC) capability be permitted to carry Class D VHF-DSC radios instead of Class A equipment. The bureau sought comment in May (see 1605190023). “The Coast Guard and the commenters agree that Class A and Class D radios provide an equivalent level of safety,” the bureau said in a notice. “Continuing to require vessels to request individual exemptions to permit use of a Class D VHF-DSC radio in lieu of a Class A radio imposes an undue administrative and financial burden.”