The federal government is struggling to keep up with the changing world of drones, said Rob Chamberlin, principal at Elevate Government Affairs, during an Association for Uncrewed Vehicle Systems International (AUVSI) webinar Wednesday. Hoffman said more attention than ever has been focused on drones because of all the things they can do like deliver drugs remotely and fight fires, and their prominence in news, including in the war in Ukraine.
Howard Buskirk
Howard Buskirk, Executive Senior Editor, joined Warren Communications News in 2004, after covering Capitol Hill for Telecommunications Reports. He has covered Washington since 1993 and was formerly executive editor at Energy Business Watch, editor at Gas Daily and managing editor at Natural Gas Week. Previous to that, he was a staff reporter for the Atlanta Journal-Constitution and the Greenville News. Follow Buskirk on Twitter: @hbuskirk
Among other comments on the 12.7 GHz band (see 2212130047), Qualcomm characterized the band as a “good contender for clearing” for exclusive-use licenses. “The 12.7 GHz Band is ideal for the deployment of the latest 6G technological advances and can offer ubiquitous coverage, low latency and high capacity,” Qualcomm said in docket 22-352: “Even though the RF propagation characteristics of the band result in greater signal losses when compared to lower mid-band spectrum, technology advances for 6G, including the Giga [multiple-input and multiple-output] antenna design, will overcome the greater signal losses at 12.7 GHz Band and allow for mobile coverage areas akin to those available today in the lower mid-band spectrum range, by taking advantage of the higher directionality of beams and advanced Giga MIMO antennas.” Ericsson supported exclusive-use licensing and said the notice of inquiry starts to position the FCC to look at other bands for 6G. “Although the 12.7 GHz band is beyond the mid-band range and poses challenges for deploying coverage with deep in-building penetration in comparison with spectrum at lower bands, it can serve an important role for 6G,” Ericsson said: “Capacity-driven 6G use cases require large spectrum bandwidth which typically is easier to find the higher the frequency. On the other hand, the higher the frequency, the lower the coverage will be. As a result, we will need a mix of bands, including more spectrum that supports today’s 5G networks in the lower ranges.” Nokia also stressed the continuing need for exclusive-use spectrum. “It is imperative that the U.S. makes a significant part of the 7-16 GHz spectrum available for licensed mobile broadband use,” Nokia said. Nokia suggested the FCC relocate fixed point-to-point links and mobile users in the band, while satellite users should be able to coexist with 6G. The company proposed a protection zone around NASA’s Goldstone Deep Space Communications Complex. CTA said “the 12.7 GHz band may be an ideal candidate for high-speed, low-latency, bandwidth-intensive applications, including augmented reality, virtual reality, telesurgery, and robotics.” The Rural Wireless Association said it's critical the band be licensed at the county level rather than through much larger partial economic area licenses. “Using PEAs would effectively prevent [the band] from being used to serve rural areas as only large carriers will have the resources to serve PEAs and such carriers do not have the economic incentive to build out in a timely manner to the most rural portions of these areas,” RWA said: “Using county-sized license areas would promote an equitable distribution of mid-band licenses and promote the rapid deployment of 5G products and services to rural areas.”
Former FCC Chief Technology Officer Monisha Ghosh warned Tuesday hat high-band spectrum isn’t living up to the hype. One of the biggest 6G challenges is “where does the new spectrum come from,” she said during the Fierce Wireless 6G Evolution Summit: “Every G has required new spectrum because the G’s are not backward compatible.”
Industry companies and groups disagreed sharply on the best way for the FCC to open the 12.7 GHz band for other users, and whether it should be offered for exclusive-use licenses or be the next big sharing band. Band incumbents urged caution. Comments were due Monday and posted Tuesday in docket 22-352. The FCC approved a notice of inquiry in October on what others call the 13 GHz band (see 2210270046).
Consumer groups want the FCC to strengthen protections against unwanted robotexts, they said in reply comments posted Monday in docket 21-402. State attorneys general, filing as a group, also urged the FCC to clamp down on robotexts. In initial comments, most said the FCC shouldn’t impose new rules on text messaging similar to those in place for robocalls (see 2211140030).
The U.S. is right to start thinking now about 6G, which will likely be commercialized starting in 2030, said Dean Brenner, a former top Qualcomm executive who chairs the FCC’s Technological Advisory Council, during the Fierce Wireless 6G Evolution Summit Monday. Brenner noted TAC is the first formal U.S. government effort to get a handle on 6G.
Carriers raised concerns in response to an FCC Further NPRM proposing to extend USF support to eligible mobile and fixed carriers in Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands, approved by commissioners 4-0 in October (see 2210270046). The proposals fall short of meeting ongoing needs, commenters told the agency, posted Monday in docket 18-143.
Chinese companies appear likely to take the FCC to court with the commissioners approving, as expected, a draft order to further clamp down on gear from Chinese companies, preventing the sale of yet-to-be authorized equipment in the U.S. The order, circulated by FCC Chair Jessica Rosenworcel Oct. 5, bans FCC authorization of gear from companies including Huawei, ZTE, Hytera Communications, Hikvision and Dahua Technology.
The FCC Office of Engineering and Technology appears to be taking a relatively conservative approach to interference mitigation in the 6 GHz band as it works through issues raised in an April 2020 Further NPRM (see 2004230059), industry officials told us. Apple and Apple/Qualcomm met with OET in recent days on the Monte Carlo simulations the tech companies are relying on to justify very-low power (VLP) operations in 6 GHz at the 14 dBm power levels proposed in the FNPRM.
CTIA and other commenters asked the FCC to adopt alternative construction and renewal requirements, proposed in a Further NPRM as part of the new enhanced competition incentive program (ECIP). Others disagreed with CTIA on what these alternative requirements should entail. Commissioners approved the program in July (see 2207140055) but asked questions about potential changes. Comments were due Monday, in docket 19-38, and posted Tuesday. The order was approved in response to provisions in the Mobile Now Act, enacted in 2018 (see 2203310036).