Analysts said the FCC is unlikely to act soon on its twin EchoStar proceedings given that the White House seems to want to avoid an EchoStar bankruptcy. The agency is probing whether the company is using the 2 GHz band for mobile satellite service and looking into the deadline extensions EchoStar received for its 5G network buildout (see 2505130003).

The Trump Organization announced Monday that later this year, it will launch Trump Mobile, a mobile virtual network operator, and a gold-colored smartphone, which it said will eventually be made in the U.S. The launch would create ethics concerns regardless, but even more so given the Trump administration's pressure for the FCC to answer directly to the White House, public interest groups said.

Ligado and Viasat's Inmarsat have struck a deal that ends Inmarsat's objections to Ligado's plan to get out of its Chapter 11 bankruptcy. Inmarsat had fought Ligado's plan to lease its L-band spectrum to AST SpaceMobile (see 2504280047). AST, meanwhile, has asked the FCC to commence commercial supplemental coverage from space (SCS) service.

What the apparent collapse of a previously tight relationship between Elon Musk and President Donald Trump means for Musk's SpaceX is uncertain, space industry and FCC watchers told us. Some believe SpaceX will face a chillier reception from regulatory agencies, including for FCC proceedings that SpaceX is intensely interested in, such as the agency's probes into EchoStar's use of the 2 GHz band and its terrestrial 5G network buildout (see 2505130003). Others don't see the feud meaning much. The FCC and FAA -- which regulates SpaceX's launch operations -- didn't comment.

If Congress authorizes the full-power licensed use of the upper C-band, an FCC auction appears unlikely before 2026 at the earliest, industry experts told us. The conventional wisdom is that it takes about a year between the initial preparation stages and an auction. But FCC Chairman Brendan Carr has promised to move quickly on spectrum and had put a notice of inquiry on the agenda for his first meeting as chairman, they also said (see 2502050057).

Lawmakers and lobbyists told us they expect the Senate will hold confirmation votes on Republican FCC nominee Olivia Trusty as soon as this week, after Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., filed cloture on her Thursday night (see 2506120097). Thune previously indicated he was likely to move up Trusty in confirmation priority after Republican FCC commissioner Nathan Simington abruptly departed the commission earlier this month (see 2506040073). Simington’s exit and the simultaneous departure of Democratic Commissioner Geoffrey Starks left the commission in a 1-1 tie and lacking a quorum.

The FCC and DOJ on Thursday asked the 1st U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals to reject challenges to the FCC’s July order implementing the Martha Wright-Reed Act of 2022, which reduces call rates for people in prisons while establishing interim rate caps for video calls (see 2407180039). The government said the order addresses the monopoly power of incarcerated persons communications services (IPCS) providers to set calling rates.

SpaceX is taking another stab at obtaining FCC approval to operate in the 1.6/2.4 GHz bands, but it's unlikely the commission will act quickly, if at all, space spectrum experts told us.

Former FCC Commissioner Nathan Simington told broadcasters Thursday that Chairman Brendan Carr has chosen not to take steps to ease the ATSC 3.0 transition. Carr could have long ago had the agency issue guidance to speed the approval of ATSC 3.0 channel-sharing applications, even without a Republican majority, Simington said in a speech at the ATSC NextGen Broadcast Conference.

The FCC’s Communications Security, Reliability and Interoperability Council (CSRIC) approved two final reports Thursday, including one on threats that AI poses to networks. FCC Chairman Brendan Carr told CSRIC members that AI has become a top focus for the agency, as it has for the rest of the Trump administration. The second report examines “Connecting Stalled 911 Calls Through Alternative Network Options.”