CTIA Sees AWACS System in Lower 3 GHz as Ripe for Moving

AWACS is widely viewed as the most difficult band for DOD to address because it’s airborne (see 2406100043). Air Force generals describe AWACS “as being on hospice care right now,” Brake said: “They have to go to the old planes out in the bone yard in order to get parts for the current operations.” Brake said DOD is already looking to upgrade AWACS to Wedgetail and other platforms, which could solve one of the toughest problems in the lower 3 GHz.

The federal government “has a tremendous amount of spectrum” and “incredibly important public policy missions that they have to carry out,” Brake said. However, the government needs a lot of spectrum and its needs "are growing, as are industry’s.” The real question is, do government agencies “face an incentive to use [their] spectrum efficiently?” he said: Based on what's been seen through several efforts to repurpose federal spectrum, “it’s fair to say that the answer is no.”

Figuring out how to make part of the lower 3 GHz and other federal bands available for carrier use won’t be easy, Brake said. “It’s going to take real engineers from the private sector and government, getting together and figuring out how we can do this efficiently, where there are real opportunities.” Brake warned against a “false narrative” that to hold an auction “we have to completely clear the lower 3 -- that’s never been something we’ve asked for,” and “it’s not something we expect.”

Michael Calabrese, director of the Wireless Future Program at New America, noted that the government already has a “process underway” for studying the lower 3 and 7/8 GHz bands under the last administration’s national spectrum strategy. “To what degree can the military, in particular, consolidate or change what they’re doing to allow full-power licenses?” he asked. The studies also look at lower-power licensing and very-low-power indoor use, he added.

Looking at “sub-bands” is critical, Calabrese said. “The facts aren’t in,” and the studies need to move forward.

Last year, wireless carriers saw a 36% increase in traffic on their networks over the previous year, which is nearly double the amount of data carried in 2023, Brake said. Connected cars, advanced manufacturing, augmented reality and smart cities are also fueling data demand, he added. Another important use is fixed wireless access, giving consumers new choices in broadband providers. Carriers can only offer fixed wireless access “where they have sufficient spectrum to manage capacity.”

“We’re already seeing some initial concerns about whether ... we have adequate spectrum resources to provide the capacity needed for AI mobile traffic,” particularly to upload data to the network, Brake said, adding that early estimates predict AI could boost uplink traffic by 35%.

Different Strokes

Other speakers said full-power licensing can’t be the only model that the government considers.

Wi-Fi carries “a disproportionate amount” of network traffic, said Monica Desai, founder of Tech Policy Advisors. Wi-Fi bears more than 90% of internet traffic in the U.S. and more than half of global traffic, added Desai, a former FCC official. Spectrum is also critical to Wi-Fi, she said. The next generation of Wi-Fi devices “needs high bandwidth, low latency, low power consumption” and “connectivity.”

Wi-Fi is “critical for innovation,” said Traci Biswese, NCTA vice president and associate general counsel. For telemedicine and remote health care, “high bandwidth and low-latency connectivity is no longer just a luxury, it’s an absolute necessity.” Smart factories, with advanced sensors, robotics and augmented-reality systems, “will depend on robust unlicensed spectrum solutions.” 5G and the future generations of wireless aren’t “synonymous with exclusive spectrum access models,” Biswese said.

New low earth orbit satellites are “on their way,” Calabrese said. They will “fill out the connectivity ecosystem by offering connectivity everywhere.” Satellite connections will come in “two flavors”: supplemental coverage from space, as authorized by the FCC last year, and direct-to-device service.

The new iPhone lets Globalstar customers two-way text anywhere, “but there’s very little spectrum for that purpose,” Calabrese said. The FCC’s proposed notice of inquiry on the upper C band (see 2502060062) could open the door to more mobile satellite spectrum, since one of the greatest needs is low midband spectrum, he said. “That’s something that’s going to be up and coming as a hot topic.”

Policymakers face tough challenges on spectrum, said Kristian Stout, director-innovation policy at the International Center for Law & Economics. Arguments in favor of more licensed, unlicensed and satellite spectrum “make very good sense.” He said it’s important to view needs through a “consumer lens” and ask “what is it that will enhance consumer welfare when you’re thinking about these questions?” Consumers increasingly expect to be connected everywhere, he added.

Providers will need “business relationships with each other where they complement each other from a consumer’s perspective,” Stout said: “That only heightens the need for both licensed and unlicensed [spectrum] in getting the balance right.” Consumers don’t care whether they’re connected through a carrier, Wi-Fi provider or satellite operator, he said.