T-Mobile asked that the FCC direct the Universal Service Administrative Co. to make Q-Link Wireless reimburse it for money it owes for using the T-Mobile network. Q-Link Wireless CEO Issa Asad faces prison time and a fine of more than $100 million after pleading guilty to fraud tied to the FCC’s Lifeline program (see 2410160029). Q-Link is required to provide restitution to the commission for Lifeline fraud, but there is no provision to compensate T-Mobile for unpaid bills, said a filing posted Friday in docket 09-197. “Q LINK has been able to retain over $500 million of USF support without fully compensating T-Mobile for the services it provided to Q LINK and indirectly to consumers,” the carrier said. “Re-directing the funds to T-Mobile would simply allow it to receive the Federal benefits for the service that it ultimately provided during the term of its agreement with Q LINK and for the services that it continues to provide to Q LINK’s Lifeline program customers,” T-Mobile said.

Lending Tree asked the FCC to change some of the one-to-one robotext consent rules commissioners approved last December (see 2312130019) before they take effect Jan. 26. Company representatives met with an aide to FCC Commissioner Brendan Carr and staff from the Consumer & Governmental Affairs Bureau, said a filing posted Friday in docket 21-402. “LendingTree urged the Commission to adopt a narrow exception to the 1-to-1 Consent Rule for curated comparison-shopping platforms in order to preserve the ‘value that comparison shopping offers to consumers who seek specific goods and services, and the value that lead generators offers to businesses, including small businesses, seeking new customers,’” the filing said. Lending Tree said a recent survey it conducted “showed that 73% of consumers who have applied for a loan or insurance policy expect to learn about service providers that they have never heard of when comparison shopping.”

EchoStar representatives met with FCC Space Bureau staff to urge the agency to move forward on higher-power fixed service use of the lower 12 GHz band. The officials refuted a recent SpaceX study warning of interference from fixed-wireless operations in the lower 12 GHz band (see 2409040035). “We explained that SpaceX’s study was designed to fail, because it employs unrealistic assumptions, and assumes interference scenarios that bear no resemblance to fixed 5G deployments designed to avoid interference and make sharing possible,” said a filing posted Friday in docket 20-443.

The Enterprise Wireless Alliance told the FCC it supports a change the American Petroleum Institute is seeking in rules for the citizens broadband radio service band (see 2410080030). EWA said it supports API’s suggestion that system administrators incorporate a general authorized access tier user algorithm that prioritizes spectrum access for small businesses and enterprise customers. CBRS is important to EWA members, said a filing posted Thursday in docket 17-258. “In a telecommunications world that focuses increasingly on commercial broadband services, the vital importance of enterprise entities to the nation’s economy and to its day-to-day functioning must be recognized,” EWA said: “Some of their wireless needs can be and are met on commercial networks, but many have core responsibilities that cannot be outsourced to the network of a third-party commercial provider.”

Verizon representatives urged uniform handset unlocking rules, during a meeting with an aide to FCC Commissioner Anna Gomez. “The ad-hoc, asymmetric locking policies that currently apply to some providers and not others result in an uneven playing field, reducing wireless competition and ultimately harming consumers,” said a filing posted Thursday in docket 24-186: “Whatever handset locking policy the Commission adopts should apply uniformly to all wireless providers.”

GSMA Intelligence expects trends in 5G growth and wide variations among the regions of the world will continue through the start of 6G in 2030, Emanuel Kolta, lead analyst-network sustainability and innovation, said Thursday. Kolta spoke during a Mobile World Live webinar. 5G isn’t new; the first commercial network launched in 2019, Kolta noted. “We have enough information to have some level of understanding about 5G and how the market, how users reacted to the launch,” he said. GMSA finds 75% of consumers say they’re happy with their 5G networks and satisfaction levels are growing, he said. In addition, it notes about a third are interested in fixed wireless access, which is a leading use case in many markets. The group also found that how 5G is deployed varies more by region than in earlier generations. He cited Southeast Asia as an example, where, more than in other regions, 5G connects “things” rather than just people. In countries with limited fiber penetration, including the U.S., the U.K. and South Africa, “FWA is a success story.” Regional differences will continue, he predicted. By GSMA’s latest count, 265 operators in 114 markets have launched 5G. By the end of the year, 5G connections are expected to reach 2 billion worldwide, “which is an enormous number,” and climb to 5.6 billion in 2030. After a period when the design and technology built into phones “kind of stalled,” consumers expect the next generations of phones to offer innovations, he said. “We also see some risks, such as the drop in smartphone sales in recent years” and the potential for geopolitical conflicts and other problems to cause supply chain issues. “We expect that consumer enthusiasm will continue,” he said: “We expect that North America will lead in terms of 5G penetration” with 90% penetration and 460 million connections by 2030. GSMA also sees data traffic continuing to grow at 30% annually. “There was some discussion around it slowing down, but bigger screens and better cameras continue to increase data traffic,” as does the growth of the IoT. GSMA believes 2G and 3G will still be used in five years, even though 5G has grown more quickly than any generation of wireless, he said. 4G networks will also continue to see broad use, though less than today.

Anterix representatives spoke with an aide to FCC Commissioner Brendan Carr, seeking action on a rulemaking authorizing 5/5 MHz broadband deployments in the 900 MHz band (see 2405210041). “The FCC decision to create a 900 MHz broadband segment has already enabled utilities across the nation, including rural areas, to design, deploy, and operate private broadband networks tailored to their highly demanding specifications,” said a filing posted Wednesday in docket 24-99. “900 MHz broadband spectrum will play an increasingly important role in enabling the grid to withstand escalating external and weather-related threats, as well as growing internal demands for power during the transition to renewable energy,” Anterix said.

The FCC Wireless Bureau on Wednesday approved a waiver of the commission’s Part 97 rules allowing amateur radio licensees to communicate with military stations as part of Pearl Harbor Day commemorations Dec. 7 and 8. The American Radio Relay League sought the waiver in October (see 2410080019). “We find grant of the waiver meets the waiver standard because this event presents a unique opportunity for amateur operators to practice communications skills under the guidance of military officials, which may be useful in the future and serves the public interest,” the bureau said. The Wireless Bureau approved a similar waiver last year (see 2311270044).

The FCC Technological Advisory Council will hold its final meeting of 2024 Dec. 19 at FCC headquarters, the agency said Wednesday. Start time is 10 a.m. EST. The TAC is focused on 5G and other spectrum issues. It last met in August (see 2408290036).

The Committee for the Assessment of Foreign Participation in the U.S. Telecommunications Service Sector asked the FCC to refer to it T-Mobile’s proposed buy of wireless assets from UScellular (see 2405280047) for further examination. DOJ asked for the referral “to determine whether these applications pose a risk to the national security or law enforcement interests” of the U.S., said a filing this week in docket 24-286. The committee -- informally known by its former name, Team Telecom -- is an interagency review body composed of DOJ, DOD and the Department of Homeland Security. DOJ “believes that such risk may be raised by the foreign participation (including the foreign relationships and ownership) associated with the applications, and a review by the Committee is necessary to assess and make an appropriate recommendation as to how the Commission should adjudicate these applications,” the filing said. It cites executive order 13913 issued in 2020 by then-President Donald Trump. Meanwhile, petitions to deny the transfer of UScellular authorizations and spectrum licenses to T-Mobile are due Dec. 9 (see 2410300051), but the National Wireless Independent Dealer Association (NWIDA) made its opposition known on Wednesday. NWIDA cited “T-Mobile's documented history of post-merger conduct that has proven detrimental to independent dealers and the communities they serve.” T-Mobile’s conduct, “particularly following the Sprint acquisition, demonstrates a concerning trend of eliminating independent dealers despite pre-merger assurances,” the group said: “Currently, T-Mobile faces multiple lawsuits from independent dealers, and their Chief Operating Officer has publicly expressed a preference for corporate-owned stores over independent dealers.”