Summit Ridge, which serves as the 3.45 GHz Clearinghouse, updated the FCC on its progress, in a report posted Tuesday in docket 19-348. “Clearinghouse costs, including both accepted hard and soft incumbent clearing expenses and Clearinghouse operating expenses, are as a whole, running close to its initial budget,” the report said. The clearing timeline is delayed some three months “because NBCUniversal has yet to complete its clearing operations and submit its final costs,” the report said. Summit Ridge said there were no disputes so far from new licensees or incumbents.

The Information Technology and Innovation Foundation last week called for greater cooperation between the U.S. and Europe on cybersecurity labeling of IoT products. Last month, the FCC approved the U.S. program (see 2403140034). The report urges coordination on technical standards and “potentially” a mutual recognition agreement. “An aligned EU-U.S. approach would allow firms to only test once in order to comply with both systems,” ITIF said: “Cooperation on IoT cybersecurity labeling would avoid creating yet another regulatory point of conflict in the transatlantic trade and technology relationship.”

Consumer Cellular requested a waiver from the FCC of a Jan. 22 deadline to file data in the commission’s one-time collection of foreign ownership information from international Section 214 authorization holders. The carrier said it holds one authorization but never received notice of the need to file until “well after the deadline.” In addition, the carrier said it “acted expeditiously to submit the required information but has been unable to do so because the portal for submissions is now closed.” A waiver “would serve the public interest by helping ensure the accurate reporting of the information requested,” said a filing posted Monday in docket 23-134. FCC commissioners agreed to the data collection in April 2023 (see 2304200039).

Samsung Electronics America and others refuted objections NCTA raised against Samsung's request for an FCC waiver for a 5G base station radio that works across citizens broadband radio service and C-band spectrum (see [Ref:2309130041). “Samsung’s proposed 3.5/3.7 GHz multiband radio will have substantially the same radiofrequency profile as a standalone 3.7 GHz radio collocated with a standalone 3.5 GHz radio” with no “practical impact” on CBRS deployments “when compared to the deployment of two standalone radios,” said a filing posted Monday in docket 23-93. Ericsson, Qualcomm and Verizon also signed the filing. NCTA opposition “in the face of measured test data demonstrates this is best understood as a collateral attack on the Commission’s rule limiting the out-of-band emissions from 3.7 GHz base stations into the CBRS band,” they said. The general objection to a current FCC rule should be dismissed as “irrelevant and improper to this waiver proceeding, especially because Samsung is not seeking a waiver of the 3.7 GHz OOBE limits.”

Florida Power & Light urged the FCC to establish a regulatory framework for uncrewed aircraft systems by authorizing shared use in a portion of the 5030-5091 MHz band for control and non-payload communications. “Doing so would promote more efficient use of the 5 GHz band and growth of the emerging UAS industry, especially with regard to innovative use cases involving critical infrastructure industries,” the utility said in a filing posted Friday in docket 22-232. “Just as importantly, the Commission can make meaningful progress in shaping the 5 GHz band’s future while it waits for Congress to renew its spectrum auction authority,” the utility said.

The FCC Wireline Bureau on Friday extended the deadline for Gogo Business Aviation and other carriers to remove, replace and dispose of Huawei and ZTE equipment from their networks. The deadline for Gogo was extended from July 21 to Jan. 21. “Gogo states that it has encountered ongoing supply chain issues arising from high demand, material scarcity, and labor shortages, particularly in machine manufacturing, which continue to cause a lack of availability of necessary equipment and extended lead times,” the bureau said. Gogo maintains the disruptions “are particularly significant because it has aviation operations, which call for custom radio equipment, rather than off-the-shelf solutions, for both its ground infrastructure and its airborne components,” the bureau said. In addition, the bureau extended the deadline for Bluesky from April 18 to Oct. 18, for Gallatin Wireless from March 23 to Sept. 23 and for Mediacom Communications from April 15 to July 15. NE Colorado Cellular got two different extensions for parts of its network, from May 3 to Nov. 3 and from June 3 to Dec. 3.

CTIA officials, led by President Meredith Baker, urged the FCC to tweak proposed net neutrality rules to exempt network slicing and other evolving services. In a call with staff for FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel, CTIA questioned generally the need to impose Communications Act Title II authority as part of the rules. Proposals to “narrow or restrict” non-broadband internet access data services “would deny the benefits of new technology such as network slicing to broadband users, unduly limit wireless innovation, and undermine American leadership in the mobile economy,” said a filing posted Friday in docket 23-320. “Network slicing will allow wireless providers to offer over a single physical network a series of logically defined virtual networks configured to satisfy use cases currently under development that may include, for example, public safety communications, robotic surgery, smart grids, and communications at crowded events,” CTIA said.

5G is surging, with 1.76 billion global connections at the end of 2023, up 700 million, or 66%, over 2022, 5G Americas said Thursday. The group forecasts connections will reach 7.9 billion by 2028. North America is leading the way, with 197 million 5G connections at the end of 2023. There are 314 5G deployments worldwide, with 17 in the North American region, 39 in Latin America and the Caribbean. “The wireless telecommunications industry witnessed a year of unprecedented growth and innovation, propelled by the unstoppable momentum of 5G technology,” 5G Americas said.

Rural Wireless Association representatives spoke with an aide to FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel on questions about the proposed 5G Fund. These include speed standards and timing of the challenge process for maps. The FCC released limited details on the proposed $9 billion fund (see 2403260052). “RWA noted its members’ concerns with how certain rule changes could potentially leave legacy high-cost mobile carriers’ 5G investments in their networks stranded if they were unsuccessful in an upcoming auction,” said a filing posted Thursday in docket 20-32. “Given the immense burden that losing legacy high-cost mobile support would put on these mobile carriers, RWA requested that the Commission include language in the to-be-adopted … Order that would allow for an extension of the two-year transition or, alternatively, a waiver of the phase out of legacy support conditioned on continued support being cost-based or determined by the auction reserve price established for the eligible area upon a showing of good cause.”

The Competitive Carriers Association warned of problems with the challenge process for broadband maps as the FCC moves forward on a 5G Fund (see 2403260052). CCA members and staff met with the FCC's Broadband Data Task Force staff. CCA noted that some carrier members “have encountered significant difficulties and failures in submitting bulk challenge data, and others believe mobile maps in their areas are inaccurate but have refrained from participating in the mobile challenge process to date to conserve resources pending more clarity regarding what data will be relevant to 5G Fund eligibility,” said a filing posted Thursday in docket 20-32: One carrier “spent hundreds of hours over five-and-a-half months compiling drive test data that covered 11,000 miles in their footprint.” But due to formatting and technical issues with the submission portal, “the carrier was ultimately unable to submit a challenge.” In addition, CCA said other members, “particularly small carriers, have faced or soon will face similar issues, preventing valuable information from contributing to the maps, especially in rural America.” Among the companies represented were Strata Networks, Nex-Tech Wireless, Appalachian Wireless, GCI and Carolina West.