FCC's O'Rielly Lambastes CAF Phase II Bid Weights, Spectrum Frontiers Requirements
FCC Commissioner Mike O'Rielly said he would back reconsideration of the FCC's Connect America Fund Phase II bid weights decision (see 1702230019) since it "seem[ed] to intentionally favor fiber over wireless and satellite" in setting the weights for determining winning…
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bids. At Monday's Satellite Industry Association (SIA) dinner, O'Rielly said he was "more than disturbed" with the ruling and though there's logic to setting quality and speed goals, favoring particular technologies "does not comply with our obligation to serve as many of the unserved as possible within our budget," according to the released text. He previously raised the idea of reconsideration at the FCC's February vote. At the SIA event, O'Rielly also criticized some spectrum frontiers decisions, calling them "best guesses ... destined to be raised on reconsideration." He said the earth station siting requirements in the 28 and 39 GHz bands didn't make sense. O'Rielly also was critical of the 2015 World Radiocommunication Conference (WRC) decision to block study of the 28 GHz band, saying "we should consider as many bands as possible for potential commercial wireless and satellite use, with the understanding that some bands may not be suitable for sharing." Pointing to WRC-19 agenda items 1.13 about terrestrial use and 1.6 about regulatory frameworks for non-geostationary satellite systems in the same frequency band, O'Rielly said, "I am sure there are heated debates to come, but studies need to be encouraged, not stymied, to inform how spectrum can be shared and to help regulators -- both here and abroad -- adopt sound spectrum policy."