Don’t expect major daylight between a Kamala Harris administration and the Joe Biden White House on major communications policy issues, industry and policy experts predicted. Much focus and effort would center on defending the FCC's net neutrality and digital discrimination orders in the current federal circuit court challenges, as well as pursuing net neutrality rules, they said. Less clear would be the nature of the relationship between Harris' White House and Big Tech. The Harris campaign didn't comment. Deregulation and undoing net neutrality are considered high on the to-do list for the administration of Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump if he's elected (see 2407110034).
The FCC on Wednesday approved a waiver of its rules for Federated Wireless requiring environmental sensing capability (ESC) systems to protect federal incumbents in the citizens broadband radio service band from harmful interference for markets that Hurricane Ernesto hits. The Wireless Bureau said the waiver is similar to those granted for similar storms and applies only to areas that experience power outages. It expires Aug. 28 or when commercial power and backhaul service are restored to the ESC sensors involved. Hurricane Ernesto made landfall as a Category 1 hurricane in Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands late Tuesday.
Samsung Electronics America representatives met with FCC Commissioners Brendan Carr and Nathan Simington on the company’s request for a waiver on a 5G base station radio that works across citizens broadband radio service and C-band spectrum (see 2309130041). Samsung “emphasized its dedication to the success of CBRS and 5G, generally, in the United States,” a filing posted Thursday in docket 23-93 said. “The proposed device -- which has been before the Commission for over 700 days -- would simply enable operators to deploy one radio where they would otherwise deploy two radios with substantially similar performance characteristics,” Samsung said.
The citizens broadband radio service band has shown that spectrum can be shared without interfering with government users, in particular the naval radars that use the band, Richard Bernhardt, Wireless ISP Association vice president-spectrum and industry, said Thursday. Recent changes approved by the FCC, working with DOD and NTIA (see 2406120027), will make the band much more usable, he said during a WISPA webinar on “CBRS 2.0.” The rule changes take effect Friday.
The FCC on Thursday approved Nokia’s application to begin initial commercial operations as a spectrum access system administrator for the citizens broadband radio service band. Nokia has satisfied the commission’s SAS laboratory testing requirements, a notice from the Wireless Bureau and Office of Engineering and Technology said. Nokia must file at the FCC information on the beginning date of its initial commercial deployment and specific geographic areas covered, the notice said.
It seems likely FCC commissioners will approve 3-2 a draft order and Further NPRM allowing schools and libraries to use E-rate support for off-premises Wi-Fi hot spots and wireless internet services. FCC Republicans are expected to issue dissents. Some advocates hope the item will be tweaked to address fixed wireless access and partnerships with nontraditional providers (see 2406270068). Commissioners will vote at their open meeting Thursday.
Samsung Electronics America representatives met with aides to FCC Commissioners Geoffrey Starks and Anna Gomez about the company’s request for a waiver on a 5G base station radio that works across citizens broadband radio service and C-band spectrum (see 2309130041). Samsung “emphasized its dedication to the success of CBRS and 5G, generally,” in the U.S., a filing posted Tuesday in docket 23-93 said. Samsung noted the commission has had the waiver request for more than 700 days.
Google is asking for a waiver of FCC rules requiring environmental sensing capability systems to protect federal incumbents in the citizens broadband radio service band from harmful interference in Texas markets that Hurricane Beryl affected. The FCC last week approved a similar waiver for Federated Wireless (see 2407080030). Google sought the waiver Friday in a filing in docket 15-319.
Expect a Donald Trump White House and FCC to focus on deregulation and undoing the agency's net neutrality and digital discrimination rules, telecom policy experts and FCC watchers tell us. Brendan Carr, one of the two GOP minority commissioners, remains the seeming front-runner to head the agency if Trump wins the White House in November (see 2407120002). Despite repeated comments from Trump as a candidate and president calling for FCC action against companies such as CNN and MSNBC over their news content, many FCC watchers on both sides of the aisle told us they don’t expect the agency to actually act against cable networks or broadcast licenses under a second Trump administration.
The FCC on Monday approved a waiver of rules that require environmental sensing capability systems to protect federal incumbents in the citizens broadband radio service band from harmful interference for markets in Texas hit by Hurricane Beryl. Federated sought a waiver Friday. The Wireless Bureau said the waiver is similar to those granted for similar storms and applies only to areas affected by power outages.