The 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals rejected an appeal by the Deer District in Milwaukee, which challenged a lower court ruling that Verizon could legally install small cells on poles it had put up near the Fiserv Forum, home of the Milwaukee Bucks. A lower court held for Verizon after the city denied the company's permits to install the small cells. Verizon won in the 7th Circuit in a procedural ruling handed down Friday (docket 24-1212).

Progeny updated the FCC on its progress in meeting the buildout requirements for parts of its 900 MHz multilateration location and monitoring service (M-LMS) licenses, urging the agency to act on a request by parent company NextNav to use the spectrum for terrestrial position, navigation and timing (see 2404160043). This was Progeny’s 22nd FCC progress report. It also mentioned the notice of inquiry that commissioners approved 4-0 in March on alternatives to GPS for PNT (see 2503270042).

Apple and Meta Platforms representatives met with FCC Office of Engineering and Technology staff on a proposed geofenced variable power (GVP) device class in the 6 GHz band (see 2408270034). They discussed GVP use cases, said a filing posted Monday in docket 18-295. “GVP will help enable a class of body-worn devices that can operate at power levels higher than very low power device power levels within permissible zones,” the companies said. “These higher powers will help address significant body loss that body-worn devices will experience.” Body loss is a form of signal attenuation.

The FCC ordered Asian Touch Spa of West Palm Beach, Florida, to identify steps the company will take after it was found to be operating a Qiangyin Bluetooth speaker that was causing interference to AT&T FirstNet’s network. After FCC agents notified the company of the interference from a signal centered on 795 MHz, the speaker was shut down, said a notice in Friday’s Daily Digest. “You have ten (10) days from the date of this notice to respond concerning your operation of this part 15 device,” the notice said. “Your response should describe the steps you are taking to avoid operating on unauthorized frequencies and preventing future interference.”

The focus of the third stage of NTIA’s Public Wireless Supply Chain Innovation Fund is to demonstrate the “real world capabilities” of open radio access networks and get more small players involved, Amanda Toman, director of the fund, said Friday. Toman spoke during a Network Media Group webcast. Applications were due in April on a notice of funding opportunity (NOFO), under which NTIA will award as much as $450 million.

NextNav reported Friday on meetings at the FCC urging the agency to launch an NPRM on its proposal for positioning, navigation and timing (PNT) in the lower 900 MHz band. NextNav representatives met with an aide to Commissioner Anna Gomez and staff at the Wireless Bureau and Office of Engineering and Technology.

The Ecommerce Innovation Alliance had meetings at the FCC concerning the group’s pursuit of a declaratory ruling that people who provide prior express written consent to receive text messages can't claim damages under the Telephone Consumer Protection Act for messages received outside the hours of 8 a.m. to 9 p.m. (see 2503030036). The group is being represented on the issue by former FCC Commissioner Mike O’Rielly and met with staff from the Consumer and Governmental Affairs and Wireless bureaus, said a filing Thursday in docket 02-278.

Numerous groups filed in support of Verizon's request that the FCC delete the unlocking commitment it stipulated as a condition of approving the company’s purchase of Tracfone (see 2505200051). Among those on the filing were the American Consumer Institute, the American Enterprise Institute, Citizens Against Government Waste, the American Association of Senior Citizens, the 60 Plus Association, the Institute for Technology and Network Economics and Less Government.

Ericsson announced Thursday the launch of Ericsson On-Demand, which it said is a “true” software-as-a-service platform for carriers. The platform incorporates Google Cloud technology, “leveraging AI infrastructure and Google Kubernetes Engine -- and is managed end-to-end by Ericsson,” the company said. The solution will help providers “quickly set up and grow core network services, cut operating costs and gain business flexibility with a fully managed, cloud-native platform.”

NW Spectrum asked the FCC to delete an exception in its Part 27 rules allowing the use of higher power levels in the 2.5 GHz band. “The Exception is no longer needed to incent deployment and competition in the 2.5 GHz band, and it is being abused by T-Mobile to the detriment of smaller wireless competitors in the 2.5 GHz band that are not working with T-Mobile,” said a filing posted Thursday in docket 25-133.