As the FCC presses on with the Lifeline national verifier rollout, some state officials continue to voice concerns about incomplete access to state databases and other issues. Other state commissioners told us they haven’t heard any complaints, though one said his agency might not get any even amid problems. The NV is midway through a state-by-state launch and is designed to make signup and reverification more automatic. Those on the front lines see growing pains and worry the poor could be incorrectly excluded from the approximately $1 billion annual federal program (see 1907080009).
FCC Chairman Ajit Pai is expected to propose a private auction of the C band, along the lines of what was proposed by the C-Band Alliance, for a vote at the Dec. 12 commissioners’ meeting, said industry officials. The order would provide some 300 MHz for 5G through private auction in 2020's first half. The FCC would likely allow no combinatorial bidding and sell all the spectrum in one auction, or possibly two, as long as there's certainty on timing of the second, the officials said. The proposal also calls for partial economic area licenses, as sought by CBA.
AT&T won’t face a statewide service-quality investigation, as Ohio Public Utilities Commissioners voted unanimously to approve Communications Workers of America’s motion to dismiss a complaint. CWA withdrew its call for a statewide probe one month after reaching tentative agreement with AT&T in contract bargaining. Ohio’s consumer advocate still wants a probe.
FCC Commissioner Brendan Carr said emphatically at a 5G Americas event Wednesday the U.S. will win the race to 5G and is easily beating China. Carr said the U.S. focus on high band spectrum and its free market system give the U.S. major advantages over China, where government, not the market, dictates how networks are built. “I bet on us,” he said.
Some wireless industry stakeholders in the debate over allocating the 6 GHz band have been lobbying to convince lawmakers to file and advance legislation requiring the FCC move forward with a plan that allows for licensed and unlicensed use of those frequencies, lobbyists told us. Such legislation would diverge from the direction of the FCC's current 6 GHz NPRM, which looks at opening 1,200 megahertz of spectrum in the band for Wi-Fi and other unlicensed use (see 1810230038).
Pivotal Commware’s request for waiver of FCC industrial signal booster (ISB) labeling requirements for its Echo 5G signal booster was opposed by many replying through Tuesday in docket 19-272. SureCall urged other booster distributors to make their opposition clear (see 1910030032). And many weighed in.
A federal privacy law shouldn’t be “less strict” than any existing state law, a National Association of Attorneys General official said Tuesday. Based on Congress’ progress, it doesn’t seem there will be a federal law in effect by January, when the California Consumer Privacy Act takes effect, said NAG Training and Research Institute Center for Consumer Protection program counsel Blake Bee. So industry will need to comply with a patchwork of laws, he told a New America event.
Pursue granularity and accuracy of broadband mapping data so consumers aren't trapped in broadband deserts when government funding is unavailable in areas deemed served, NTCA replied on FCC digital opportunity data collection (see 1909240005). Commenters differed on a latency-reporting obligation and most opposed collecting prices. DODC replies posted through Tuesday in docket 19-195.
Judges peppered both sides with questions as the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit heard oral argument Tuesday on an FCC decision in 2013 to set a $1.56 billion nationwide aggregate reserve price in the 2014 auction of H-block spectrum. NTCH, which is challenging the order, urged the court to vacate Auction 96. Judges could also remand the case to the FCC for further work.
Areas of wide agreement among C-band users, satellite operators and other stakeholders are emerging, and with them issues that need resolution before the FCC acts or through an eventual order, experts and a policymaker said Tuesday. All agree that some frequencies will be repurposed for 5G, said FCC Commissioner Mike O'Rielly. "There is a broad consensus on at least a couple of points," said NAB Associate General Counsel Patrick McFadden: Spectrum will be repurposed, content delivery using the satellite band should be protected, and "end users should be held harmless."