The informal working groups of the World Radiocommunication Conference 2015 will meet next month, the FCC said Thursday in a public notice (http://bit.ly/1rc5jZC). The terrestrial services group meets July 8, and the maritime, aeronautical and radar services group meets July 16, it said. The space services group and the regulatory issues group meet Aug. 5. All meetings will take place via teleconference, it said.

CTIA applauds rather than criticizes CEA for a report on the economic impact of unlicensed spectrum, CTIA President Meredith Baker said Thursday in a blog post (http://bit.ly/1jAQ7jy). “Washington loves a good fight, a good debate,” she said. “There isn’t one here.” Both unlicensed and licensed spectrum are critical, Baker said. “Both are needed by our country to continue the amazing investment and innovation that makes our wireless ecosystem the envy of the world.” CEA said in a report released Monday unlicensed spectrum generates $62 billion a year for the U.S. economy (http://bit.ly/1nktNvU).

The FCC Wireless and Wireline bureaus Thursday extended by 30 days the deadline for winning bidders of Mobility Fund Phase I support to file annual reports with the commission. The bureaus said they took the step without being formally asked to do so by anyone outside the agency. Reports were due July 1 and they are now due July 31, the bureaus said in a Thursday public notice (http://bit.ly/1qwwYH9). All winners must file reports for the first five years after funds are authorized.

CTIA President Meredith Baker explained the importance of spectrum to the wireless industry, as well as the need for expediting the wireless siting process, in a meeting Monday with FCC Commissioner Ajit Pai. Baker also emphasized that “Title II regulation is not necessary to preserve an open Internet,” said an ex parte filing on the meeting posted Thursday by the FCC in docket 12-268 (http://bit.ly/1pnVCaY). Baker also discussed the importance of the pending TV incentive auction, the filing said. “CTIA urged the Commission to continue to recognize the unique technical, operational, and competitive differences that apply to mobile wireless broadband, whether it is the dependence on government for access to a critical source of capacity, spectrum, or the need to actively manage networks to ensure a high quality experience for consumers that seek access to the Internet wherever and whenever they want,” the group said. Scott Bergmann, vice president-regulatory affairs, accompanied Baker at the meeting.

Brownsville, Texas’s request for a three-day delay in filing a notification of intent to upgrade its system was granted as de minimis by an FCC Public Safety Bureau order released Wednesday (http://bit.ly/1kOvtft). Brownsville’s Public Safety Land Mobile Station, Call Sign WQLR527, is subject to relocation as part of the FCC’s 800 MHz rebanding, the order said. Brownsville said it provided a cost estimate for the rebanding of its system to Sprint on May 12, but did not notify Sprint of its intent to upgrade its system until May 15, the order said.

"Smart connected devices” will grow increasingly mainstream by 2018, when 43.3 percent of new shipments globally will be priced under $200, compared with 32.7 percent in 2013, IDC said in a report (http://bit.ly/1vQ2HTV). Included in those shipments are desktop and laptop PCs, tablets and 2-in-1s, but predominantly smartphones, said the industry research firm Tuesday. The high end will take a hit as the share of total shipments priced above $500 falls to 21.1 percent in 2018 from 33 percent in 2013, it said. The smartphone installed base is quickly approaching 2 billion units, and vendors are “scrambling” to find the next 2 billion users in emerging markets like Brazil, China and India, it said. By comparison, sales in “mature” markets like the U.S. and Western Europe are slowing to single-digit annual percentage growth rates “as the installed base swells,” it said. Still, IDC estimated that by 2018, six smartphones will ship for every PC.

More than two-thirds of U.S. mobile phone subscribers prefer data plans that cover only smartphones, while the rest prefer plans that would extend to multiple devices, such as tablets and laptops, Parks Associates found in a study released early Wednesday (http://bit.ly/Ubnio3) in anticipation of Amazon’s announcement of a smartphone and subsidized mobile data plan. Two in every three subscribers would rather buy a smartphone at full price in return for scrapping a contract. Lower-income subscribers especially like the idea of unsubsidized handsets because they believe it will lower their monthly fees, the study found.

Representatives of handset maker HTC cautioned the FCC against imposing overly aggressive timetables for improved wireless E911 location accuracy, in a meeting with FCC Commissioner Mike O'Rielly and an aide to Commissioner Ajit Pai. The FCC should keep in mind “the nascent state of location technology,” HTC said in an ex parte filing posted by the FCC Wednesday (http://bit.ly/T7tzjH) in docket 07-114.

T-Mobile is looking to scoop up 700 MHz spectrum from smaller carriers, the New York Post reported (http://bit.ly/1qsPsYY), citing unnamed sources. In April, T-Mobile wrapped up its $3.3 billion acquisition of low-band spectrum from Verizon, giving the carrier for the first time a substantial amount of sub-1 GHz spectrum. The deal gave T-Mobile low-band spectrum in 21 of the top 30 U.S. markets, including Los Angeles, New York and Washington (CD April 24 p10). A T-Mobile spokesman declined to comment.

Global mobile game revenue is expected to hit $28.9 billion by 2016, Juniper Research projected in a report released Wednesday. That would be more than 38 percent higher than the $20.9 billion expected for 2014, it said. Due to the “domination” of casual gamers playing free-to-play titles, developers’ approaches have shifted away from “bulk acquisition” of unique players, it said in a news release. Under the new strategy, developers are increasing lifetime value by analyzing, “re-engaging” and monetizing users, allowing for higher returns on investment, it said. Tablet users will spend more on in-game purchases and generate more revenue per device than smartphone users, it projected. Despite the mobile game growth, dedicated game devices such as the PS4 and Xbox One will “continue to serve a niche gaming audience,” it predicted. Console game software will increasingly “embrace elements” of mobile games, as “reflected by” the introduction of PlayStation Now, Sony’s coming cloud game service that will let users play games through online streaming on a per-game or subscription basis, said Juniper.