The FCC should give native tribes priority in allocating and licensing spectrum, create a special “Native Nations Broadband Fund” and take on a “tribal-centric” view of economic development, Native American groups said in comments in docket 11-41. The National Congress of American Indians, Native Telecom Coalition for Broadband, National Tribal Telecommunications Association, American Library Association and Alexicon Telecommunications Consulting endorsed some form of a broadband fund for tribes. “The FCC must take extraordinary measures to provide parity of communications service with non-Native communities,” the Tribal Telecom Association said in a joint filing with the Gila River Telecommunications Association. “Since the passage of the 1996 Telecom Act, only three Native governments have attained full regulatory self-provisioning [eligible telecommunications carrier] status.”
The satellite business continued its revenue growth streak in 2010, largely on the back of satellite services, the industry’s largest sector, the Satellite Industry Association said. At the end of Q3 -- the most recent data available -- industry employment had fallen 2.7 percent since the end of 2009, SIA said in its annual study. It was done by Futron Corp. using surveys of 80 companies, 40 of which are SIA members, and publicly available data and research, and is at http://xrl.us/bks9s8.
The FCC International Bureau’s long lead time on what is supposed to be a yearly satellite competition report isn’t a source of much concern around the industry, satellite executives said. Some executives said the large gap of time since the last report, which was adopted Oct. 14, 2008, may reflect an industry confidence in the market’s competitiveness and a lack of competitive concern on Capitol Hill. Others said the gap has left some in the industry wondering if the report is working as a means for monitoring competition in the market.
The 1755-1780 MHz band is ideal for wireless broadband, and should be reallocated as quickly as possible, CTIA, 4G Americas and the carriers filing comments told the FCC. The band has been identified by NTIA as its top priority for evaluation. Carriers have long sought to have the band paired with the AWS-3 spectrum for eventual auction. The FCC’s Spectrum Task Force had sought comment on various bands identified by NTIA as potentially suitable for wireless broadband. Comments were due Friday.
The Bureau of Industry and Security received 55 comments on its December 2010 advance notice of proposed rulemaking (ANPR) on revising the Commerce Control List (CCL) to make it more clear, positive, and tiered. Commenters expressed concerns on the tier placement criteria for items and on the foreign availability aspects of the CCL.
The Bureau of Industry and Security received 41 public comments on its December 2010 proposed rule to add a new License Exception Strategic Trade Authorization (STA). Commenters expressed concerns that the proposed exception is too conservative and will not benefit many companies, and provided recommendations for new licensing mechanisms.
TIA said it strongly supports an FCC proposal to reduce regulatory barriers and create “innovation zones” aimed at increasing the efficiency of spectrum use. The FCC should consider allowing for-profit companies to do research under new experimental licensing rules, the association said in a filing at the commission. “TIA’s members operate research campuses and labs where radio frequency is effectively contained, but like colleges, universities, and non-profit research organizations, face the burdensome and inefficient process of applying for multiple licenses to conduct research that drives innovation,” said Danielle Coffey, TIA’s vice president for government affairs. “Excluding for-profit companies from the FCC’s proposals will chill innovation, investment, job creation, and economic growth.” CTIA said it supports the use of experimental licensing to spur development of new technologies, but licensed wireless operations must be protected from harmful interference. The FCC “should make research program licenses available to wireless vendor and carrier laboratories, make innovation zone licenses available to single entities, and make medical program licenses available for testing all devices with a general medical purpose,” the association said. But Marcus Spectrum Solutions questioned whether changing the experimental licensing rules would have much benefit. “The present Part 5 Experimental License System is not a major obstacle to innovation and given the expected tightening of resources at FCC due to the budget situation it is questionable whether the proposals here have really significant enough impact on innovation to justify the diversion of staff effort from larger impact issues,” the company said. Proposed modifications to FCC rules could mean a flood of “uncertified, and potentially interfering and irretrievable, equipment,” said the Satellite Industry Association in an FCC filing. Controls are necessary before equipment is sold or leased in connection with a market trial, said SIA. While it “generally endorses” the proposed rules for experimental licenses, safeguards are needed, the association said. For instance, the scope of the program licenses should be clarified to prevent experiments “that are too far-flung,” said SIA. The spectrum available for the licensees should exclude safety-of-life services as well as fixed, mobile and broadcast satellite service spectrum ,because it can be hard to locate interference in those bands, said SIA. Experimental license applications should be granted within 14 calendar days of submission, unless objected to by NTIA, said the association.
The terrestrial use of dynamic radios in satellites bands isn’t “technically feasible and would pose a serious threat of harmful interference to satellite networks,” the Satellite Industry Association said in comments on the FCC. The SIA was responding to a notice of inquiry on increasing efficient use of spectrum through dynamic use technologies. Neither real-time databases nor spectrum sensing technologies could fully protect satellite services from interference, the group said. Blanket-licensed earth stations, receive-only dishes and mobile satellite transceivers couldn’t be protected by a real-time database because accurate location information is necessary, said SIA. Spectrum sensing technologies also couldn’t protect downlinks because a dynamic radio’s “proximity to an earth station has no impact on the aggregate noise that the receiver” on a satellite receives, the association said.
The FCC should proceed with caution as it considers the use of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), balloon-mounted systems and other aerial base stations that could be quickly dispatched to disaster areas to keep communications alive when other systems falter, CTIA said. The Public Safety Bureau sought comment about low-altitude aerial telecommunications systems in a Jan. 28 public notice. Many of the responses were posted by the FCC Tuesday.
Provisions in the EPA’s recent greenhouse gas reporting rules will hit the U.S. semiconductor industry, the Semiconductor Industry Association (SIA) said in a petition for reconsideration filed with the agency. The association also filed a petition for review of the rules with the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit. “The SIA supports GHG reporting for our industry and we stand ready to work constructively with the EPA to develop a revised rule that achieves our shared environmental goals in a more balanced, cost-effective and less burdensome manner,” said association President Brian Toohey.