Nokia Joins Others Opposing ATSC 3.0-in-Smartphone Mandates

interest,” said Nokia in a letter posted Friday in docket 16-142. Nokia, which sold its smartphone business to Microsoft, joins Ericsson and Motorola in arguing that 3.0 reception in smartphones is a bad idea because it would require handset form-factor changes that consumers would reject or would degrade cellular coverage performance (see 1709150039 and 1709130050). T-Mobile was the first to cite its opposition, alleging Sinclair is oversimplifying the complexities of building 3.0 into smartphones, and a mandate wouldn't serve the public interest (see 1709120020). Sinclair denies seeking a mandate but said overcoming complexities of 3.0 in smartphones is a worthy challenge. The FCC has a self-imposed deadline of a 2017 order authorizing 3.0 as a final voluntary standard (see 1702230060). Nokia is “actively working with several carriers to supply equipment for expeditious deployment of networks” supporting the 600 MHz band, the company wrote. For smartphones to receive 3.0, they would need to operate at “additional frequencies, possibly as low as 470 MHz,” Nokia said. If the same antenna is used to receive 3.0 signals in the 470-608 MHz band in addition to the 600 MHz band, “antenna performance is likely to degrade,” it said. “This antenna performance degradation can directly translate into significant loss in the coverage benefit typically provided by these lower frequencies.” Whatever “limited physical space” exists in a smartphone “should be available for more valuable uses than ATSC 3.0,” such as MIMO operation, for which there exists “very valid business justification,” said the company. “A new antenna design” will be needed, it said. “The ATSC 3.0 chip will also need to be accommodated on the device next to the cellular circuitry. The ATSC 3.0 receiver chain will need to be isolated from the cellular receiver chain to mitigate any interference issues.”