Satellite and wireless interests are at odds over whether there still needs to be a 50 MHz guard band in the 28 GHz band as protection for upper microwave flexible-use service (UMFUS) networks. The FCC Space Bureau last month solicited comments in docket 17-95 about communications with earth stations in motion (ESIM) in the 28.35-28.6 GHz band (see 2512190009).
A report by New America’s Wireless Future Program, released Thursday, called for a broader vision of network convergence, beyond “the siloed vision” of mobile 6G. The report also emphasized the importance of mobile, fixed and satellite services to creating “ubiquitous, seamless, and interoperable networks.”
With Winter Storm Fern looming this weekend, Federated Wireless asked the FCC for a waiver of rules that require environmental sensing capability systems to protect federal incumbents in the citizens broadband radio service band from harmful interference. The waiver is for dynamic protection areas in the eastern U.S. most likely to be affected, said a filing posted Thursday in docket 15-319.
Proposed reforms to the FCC’s application of the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) and the National Historic Preservation Act (NHPA) will speed wireless deployments and significantly reduce costs, according to a study by NERA Economic Consulting, which was conducted for CTIA and released Thursday.
The FCC Office of Engineering and Technology reiterated in a public notice Wednesday that the commission is exempting some drones and drone components from its “covered list” of goods that are prohibited for import or sale because they pose unacceptable risks to national security (see 2601080021). The exemptions expire Jan. 1, 2027. All drones and critical components authorized for use in the U.S. “may continue to receive software and firmware updates that mitigate harm to U.S. consumers” through at least that date, the notice said.
Ericsson on Wednesday unveiled “5G Advanced Location Services,” promising sub-10-centimeter outdoor and sub-meter indoor accuracy for wireless calls, which can be integrated into a 5G stand-alone core. The worldwide market for 5G positioning “is in its early stages but poised for rapid growth,” Ericsson said. The offering “responds to this demand with scalable, developer-friendly capabilities that improve device battery life compared to legacy systems.”
Representatives of T-Mobile and Grain met with an aide to FCC Chairman Brendan Carr to discuss their pending low-band transaction and ask for agency approval, according to a filing posted this week in docket 25-178. Grain Management agreed to buy T-Mobile's 800 MHz spectrum in exchange for cash and Grain's 600 MHz spectrum portfolio (see 2503210033).
Wireless Infrastructure Association CEO Patrick Halley met with FCC Commissioner Olivia Trusty to raise concerns about EchoStar’s sale of spectrum to AT&T and SpaceX, but he didn’t oppose the transactions per se, according to a filing posted Wednesday in docket 25-303 and others. Association members and “the entire wireless infrastructure ecosystem are being harmed” as a result of “EchoStar’s threatened and actual abandonment of its obligations,” the filing said.
CTIA representatives stressed the importance to FCC staff of the 911 Location Technologies Test Bed to establish “achievable and enhanced” horizontal benchmarks for calls to 911 and “assess whether text-to-911 location accuracy benchmarks are appropriate.” The group met last week with an aide to FCC Chairman Brendan Carr, according to a filing posted Wednesday in docket 07-114. “Innovations in commercial technologies have yielded the most accurate and actionable location information ever available to support public safety’s response to wireless 911 callers,” it said. The wireless industry remains “optimistic that evolving technologies will deliver location information with wireless 911 calls that is even more actionable to help first responders save lives.”
Cisco Systems responded Tuesday to the FCC's proposed upper C-band auction by tying it to U.S. progress on AI. Comments on the C-band NPRM, which commissioners approved in November (see 2511240048), were due Tuesday in docket 25-59. “Expanding licensed spectrum availability, especially in globally standardized spectrum bands, is essential to the future 6G AI-native networks,” Cisco said. The company urged rules for the band that are “harmonized with the Lower C-band (3.7-3.98 GHz)” to “facilitate rapid deployment.”