Wireless carriers' cellsite text control center and location-based routing parameters could let TCCs route texted messages to the 988 suicide prevention hotline to a centralized 988 center or multiple centers, Intrado representatives told FCC Wireline and Public Safety bureaus' staffers, per a docket 18-336 posting Wednesday. It said that also would let 988 centers route the texts to other destinations. It said that option would support numerous text protocols, not real-time text.

The National Advertising Division upheld some T-Mobile 5G claims Wednesday but had quibbles with others, following up on complaints from Verizon. Better Business Bureau's NAD said T-Mobile’s claim to offer the “‘largest’ 5G network is substantiated and that its ‘5G speeds as fast as Wi-Fi’ claim was supported in the context in which it was presented.” T-Mobile should “discontinue the claim that it has the ‘fastest’ 5G Network or qualify the claim to indicate that T-Mobile’s 5G Network has the fastest average overall, combined 5G Network speeds” and claims that it's “‘the leader in 5G coverage and speed’ should be modified to limit the claim to its advantages in coverage and average, overall combined 5G speeds.” Tuesday, NAD gave similar mixed marks to Verizon, in response to T-Mobile complaints. NAD recommended “challenged claims be modified or discontinued, including those that overstate the benefits of 5G Ultra Wideband (5G UWB) or obscure the differences between Verizon’s wireless offerings and among its service plans.” Verizon didn't comment. “We are pleased that NAD was largely supportive of a majority of our claims,” a T-Mobile spokesperson emailed: “We plan to make minor modifications to our ‘fastest 5G network’ claim and other ads to ensure consumers have an even clearer understanding.”

The Wi-Fi Alliance released an automated frequency coordination compliance test plan Tuesday for the 6 GHz band. The FCC is seeking AFC proposals, due Nov. 30 (see 2109290040). “Wi-Fi Alliance development efforts on this innovative AFC system aim to ensure worldwide adoption, interoperability, security, and reliability expected of Wi-Fi,” the group said.

The FCC Office of Engineering and Technology OK’d a waiver for Zebra Technologies to market its Dart system for precision tracking in NFL and other sports venues, operating at 7125-8500 MHz (see 2104260041). “This device operating under the specified waiver conditions poses no greater risk of causing harmful interference to communication services than those devices already permitted under the existing rules,” OET said Tuesday.

The RKF Engineering Solutions study about satellite and terrestrial sharing of the 12 GHz band is "an exacting description of the engineering model’s design, methodology, mathematical equations, geographic base-station siting distributions, data sources, operational parameters, assumptions, sensitivities, and results," RS Access said Tuesday in a filing in FCC docket 20-443. SpaceX had criticized the study (see 2109280059). RS Access said the FCC doesn't need to "unwind" the Rural Digital Opportunity Fund auction in order to introduce flexible use rights into the band because FCC funding applicants don't have "any legitimate, investment-backed expectations in the status quo."

CTA urged the FCC to act on revised rules for short-range field disturbance sensor (FDS) radars in the 60 GHz band (see 2110180062), in replies posted Tuesday in docket 21-264. “The Notice is an important step in the development of this band, as it proposes to expand the band’s use for emerging technologies while recognizing the value of the unlicensed and licensed operations that have long been permitted,” CTA said: “Take further steps to adopt final rules in this proceeding to provide the adequate level of certainty requisite to fostering innovation.” Protect other users, said Facebook, Intel and Qualcomm. “The record confirms that higher-power radar applications should be enabled only in a manner that allows for coexistence with communications applications,” they said: “Radar proponents agree that the Commission’s aim should be coexistence with other 60 GHz unlicensed technologies.” Google saw broad agreement that rules should be based on current European Telecommunications Standards Institute standards, as proposed in the July NPRM (see 2107140032). “ETSI standard EN 305 550 provides an ideal starting point,” Google said: “This harmonized standard, which has been in effect for more than six years, forms the basis of regulations for the 60 GHz band implemented by the European Commission and relied on in more than 66 countries.” Approve “flexible coexistence rules rather than a ‘one-size-fits-all’ requirement,” Apple said: Don't "impose a prescriptive duty cycle mandate for all devices that would treat successive transmissions of less than two milliseconds as ‘on time.’” The mandate “intended to provide stringent regulatory non-interference guarantees for a subset of unlicensed devices" is "inconsistent with the spectrum policies that have made Part 15 a resounding success,” Apple said. “There is broad, general agreement among radar proponents to adopt rules that align with the European regulations,” said Acconeer. The record makes clear “that the range of radar use cases -- in use or soon to be in use -- for the 60 GHz band requires great flexibility in the technical requirements to account for the technical needs of the different use cases,” the company said. The band has been allocated for FDS “in much of the rest of the world,” said IEE Sensing, noting others “urged the Commission to adopt rules that would be harmonized with the standards adopted in Europe and Korea.”

Verizon 5G Edge with AWS Outposts, a “cloud computing platform that brings compute and storage services to the edge of the network on the customer premises,” is now available, Verizon said Monday. The offering provides the bandwidth and low latency needed for “real-time enterprise applications” including “intelligent logistics, factory automation and robotics,” Verizon said.

If the 3.45 GHz auction fails, the band likely won’t be deployed for several years, “making the failure a boon for the comparatively spectrum rich and a problem for those currently spectrum deprived,” New Street’s Blair Levin told investors over the weekend. The auction closed at $9.8 billion Monday, after speculation last week that the auction was in trouble (see 2110140059). The first reaction would likely be “everyone will claim the auction proves the wisdom of what they previously argued,” Levin said. Congress, the FCC and NTIA will look at “a series of issues the failure raises, with many of those issues likely to be raised for the next band as well,” he said. Failure would likely have no effect on the next 5G auction of the 2.5 GHz band, he said: “The situation there is different, with T-Mobile and smaller carriers who want it having the capacity to meet the reserve. Further, the Democrats will not want another delay of spectrum allocation to 5G uses on their watch.”

Proposals in a July FCC Further NPRM, seeking revised rules for short-range field disturbance sensor (FDS) radars in the 60 GHz band, got general support in replies posted in docket 21-264 before Monday night's deadline. Tech companies had noted the importance of protecting ultra-high throughput and ultra-low latency Wi-Fi (see 2109210062). “As other commenters from across industries rightly noted, the current rules are inhibiting the introduction of life-saving applications, such as in-vehicle child safety systems and other industrial radar devices that could greatly enhance worker safety,” said the Motor & Equipment Manufacturers Association. Axis Communications supports “proposed changes that are as technology neutral as possible and take harmonization with other standards, in particular the European standard for Short Range Devices … into account,” the company said: “Changes in the rules should not stand against the primary purpose of part 15 to allow for unlicensed operation.” Banner Engineering said it plans to offer products in the U.S. that use 60 GHz pulse radars. The Wireless ISP Association counseled caution, in a Monday statement. “WISPA members are utilizing the 60 GHz band to deliver gigabit connectivity,” the group said. “As the Commission thinks through how to best utilize this critical workhorse band for high-speed broadband, it should ensure that it does not harm existing and extensive use cases,” WISPA said: “It should not raise costs of deploying rural broadband by imposing listen-before-talk or spectrum sensing requirements on unlicensed communications devices in the band. … Keeping the same unlicensed power limits will ensure that existing deployments are not harmed and that the 60 GHz band remains a viable option for gigabit broadband.”

Any FCC recommendation of U.S. support for possible consideration a spectrum allocation for space-based radar sounders in the 40-50 MHz range at the 2023 World Radiocommunication Conference should be conditioned on the recommendation explicitly saying incumbents in adjacent frequency bands are protected and not constrained, ARRL said in docket 16-185 Friday. Amateur radio service has a primary allocation in the U.S. at 50-54 MHz, it said.