Generative AI will see rapid growth in the U.S., including by telecom carriers, said Nelson Englert-Yang, industry analyst on strategic technologies at ABI Research. But many providers and other companies remain confused about how they will use AI, other experts said Tuesday during an RCR Wireless webinar.

LAS VEGAS – An ATSC 3.0 datacasting joint venture that combines the spectrum of the four largest TV groups is viable now but would be capable of nearly 10 times the capacity if the FCC requires a nationwide transition, said executives from Sinclair, Nexstar, Gray and E.W. Scripps in a news conference Monday at NAB Show 2025. Their joint venture, Edgebeam Wireless, was announced in January (see 2501070079).

The FCC’s “Delete, Delete, Delete” docket is active, with 159 filings as of late Tuesday. While big industry players haven't yet weighed in, comments so far represent a hodgepodge, mostly from individuals discussing pet projects. FCC Chairman Brendan Carr launched docket 25-133 last month (see 2503120055) as part of the agency’s commitment “to ending all of the rules and regulations that are no longer necessary.”

Communications policy-focused lobbyists and other observers expect most Senate Commerce Committee Democrats will vote against advancing NTIA administrator nominee Arielle Roth on Wednesday, they told us. Democrats’ criticism of Roth won't ultimately threaten her prospects, though, as observers said they expect Senate Commerce Republicans to almost uniformly support her. Senate Commerce's meeting to vote on Roth will begin at 10 a.m. in 253 Russell. Lawmakers and observers said they expect Democrats to be equally, if not more, critical of Republican FCC nominee Olivia Trusty during a confirmation hearing that will immediately follow the Roth vote (see 2504080066).

LAS VEGAS—FCC Commissioner Anna Gomez on Monday decried “an administration-wide campaign to censor and control” media but said she and FCC Chairman Brendan Carr “work very well” when they collaborate. During a Q&A at NAB Show 2025, Gomez also vowed to continue speaking out if the White House fires her and said she doesn’t blame broadcasters for the industry’s lack of pushback on the FCC action against TV networks. “I understand that all these parties all have to operate in this environment, and sticking your neck out is not the easiest thing to do,” Gomez said. “There’s nothing [the White House] can do to me. They can’t even deport me!”

Senate Commerce Committee Democrats appeared set Tuesday afternoon to pillory Republican FCC candidate Olivia Trusty during her confirmation hearing Wednesday over concerns about the commission's independence from the Trump administration and Chairman Brendan Carr’s actions since he took the gavel Jan. 20. Congressional Democrats have amplified concerns about the FCC’s future independence since President Donald Trump’s disputed firing of both party-affiliated FTC commissioners (see 2504010053). Trusty’s hearing will immediately follow a scheduled 10 a.m. Senate Commerce meeting to vote on NTIA administrator nominee Arielle Roth, which is likely to see her advance with strong GOP support and little to no Democratic backing (see 2504080059). Both events will occur in 253 Russell.

LAS VEGAS -- Broadcasters are optimistic about ownership deregulation and concerned about tariffs, while NAB is looking to broaden the NAB Show’s appeal, according to speeches and interviews at NAB Show 2025, which kicked off Saturday and runs until Wednesday. The show is set to feature almost no FCC presence compared with previous years, as only Commissioner Anna Gomez planned to attend.

LAS VEGAS -- A proposal to use ATSC 3.0 stations to create a U.S. backup to GPS is more about justifying a speedy transition to the new standard than directly monetizing it, broadcasters and broadcast engineers told us at the NAB Show 2025. The U.S. is the only major power without a backup solution for GPS, and the Broadcast Positioning System proposed by NAB and Sinclair is the most promising candidate in two decades, said Patrick Diamond, a member of the National Space-Based Positioning, Navigation and Timing Advisory Board. For the proposed BPS system to work optimally, “the more towers, the better,” said Tariq Mondal, NAB's vice president-advanced technology.

The FCC's 2024 foreign-sponsored content rules are potentially "problematic" in how they put most advertising into the category of "leases," U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit Judge Gregory Katsas said at oral argument Monday. NAB is challenging the rules (docket 24-1296) (see 2501220078). During oral argument, the group repeatedly emphasized that there's a difference between leases and ad time. Meanwhile, Judge Karen Henderson seemed skeptical of NAB arguments that the order caught it unaware.

The FCC posted Monday draft items for the commission’s April 28 open meeting (see 2504040070), including rules for the lower 37 GHz band that would require nonfederal users to obtain a nationwide nonexclusive license before registering sites in the band. The decades-old geostationary orbit (GSO)/non-geostationary orbit (NGSO) spectrum-sharing regime in the 10.7-12.7, 17.3-18.6 and 19.7-20.2 GHz bands is “the single most constraining regulatory requirement on NGSO satellite systems currently deploying at breakneck speed,” the FCC said in a notice proposing to revisit those sharing rules.