Proponents Hopeful Carr Will Move on Fixed Wireless in 12 GHz
Supporters of opening the lower 12 GHz band for fixed wireless use remain hopeful about a favorable FCC decision. That's despite the opposition from SpaceX and the major role its CEO, Elon Musk, is now playing ahead of the start of the second Trump presidency. FCC Commissioner Brendan Carr, President-elect Donald Trump's choice to lead the agency, has said repeatedly he will follow the guidance of FCC engineers about the band's future (see 2207140053).
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The lower 12 GHz is some of the only “low-hanging fruit” that will be available to the next administration, Jeff Blum, EchoStar executive vice president-external and legislative affairs, told us. It’s “500 MHz of upper mid-band spectrum that can be authorized without auction authority.” There are “no government stakeholders, no FAA, no GPS, no DOD,” he said. “It just requires a rule change.”
One recurring criticism of the BEAD program is that it mostly targets fiber, Blum said. “We believe that all technologies should play a role in the BEAD program,” including fixed wireless and satellite, depending on the area. The Trump administration could notch a quick spectrum win on a program that has broad support, including from tribal communities, he said.
“This would be a quick win for the commission in [the] absence of spectrum auction authority” on an initiative that former FCC Chairman Ajit Pai launched, said Incompas CEO Chip Pickering.
Whereas the current FCC was “cautious" on 12 GHz, “Carr will take a courageous approach,” Pickering predicted. The new FCC “will be bent toward action and [Carr] has been a leader on fixed wireless and touting its benefits as a cost-effective way to close the digital divide.” Pickering said satellite deployments are compatible with fixed wireless and the two technologies together will help extend the areas BEAD covers.
Public Knowledge Senior Vice President Harold Feld said commissioners on both sides of the aisle often defer to the Office of Engineering and Technology on “questions such as whether sharing is possible.” If OET decides the band can be shared, Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel could still seek a vote on an order, he said. Feld noted that the last Trump FCC voted on a 12 GHz notice of inquiry in January 2021, a week before the Biden administration started (see 2101130067).
But other observers expect the next FCC will be cautious on 12 GHz. SpaceX, and EchoStar in particular, have battled over recent technical studies each offered on band sharing (see 2411220016).
“It's unlikely that the commission will compromise SpaceX's rights to enable more fixed wireless use in this band,” predicted Joe Kane, Information Technology and Innovation Foundation director-broadband and spectrum policy. “The question will come down to the strength of the technical case for possible coexistence,” Kane emailed: “The FCC was unimpressed with the [5G for 12 GHz] Coalition's arguments on that the first time around, but fixed wireless is a somewhat simpler case.”
Nothing significant will happen until the new administration takes office, said Summit Ridge Group President Armand Musey. Carr might see the EchoStar proposal “as a windfall giveaway -- not to mention SpaceX's opposition,” Musey emailed. “I'd lower the odds of that getting through during a Trump administration.”