Ericsson said it backed a joint proposal by T-Mobile and the Rura...

FCC divide the 30 MHz E-block licenses into 3 parts, incorporating those parts in a modified AWS band plan. “The proposed plan will enable carriers serving rural and undeserved areas to access smaller, more affordable spectrum blocks that may be more appropriate for their needs,” Ericsson said: “At the same time, carriers desiring larger blocks may still aggregate smaller spectrum blocks and licenses through auctions or the secondary market to suit their business plans.” Ericsson in past recommended that the FCC adopt 3 licenses of 2x15 MHz. But the firm said this week that “market conditions have changed significantly” since it made that recommendation. “Industry consolidations have increased the largest wireless carriers’ spectrum holdings considerably and the market may continue to move in this direction,” Ericsson said: “At the same time, other national, regional and rural carriers need access to spectrum on a smaller scale to augment their existing voice and data services and deploy innovative product offerings.” Ericsson said the FCC must respond to such market development by adopting smaller spectrum block sizes licensees can adjust based on existing spectrum holdings to fit individual business plans.