AT&T said the outage that affected many wireless subscribers on Thursday (see 2402220058) was most likely a technical problem and not a cyberattack. An initial review concluded the outage resulted from the "application and execution of an incorrect process ... as we were expanding our network,” AT&T said in a Thursday evening update. The carrier said it’s still investigating. House Commerce Committee Chair Cathy McMorris Rodgers, R-Wash., and Communications Subcommittee Chairman Bob Latta, R-Ohio, said Thursday night they are assessing the "disruption in order to gain a complete understanding of what went wrong and what can be done to prevent future incidents like this from occurring.” As more information comes in, the panel “will continue to encourage transparency and accountability for those affected and ensure that appropriate steps are taken to strengthen our communications networks, which are vital for nearly every aspect of our economy and daily lives.”

Representatives of the Open Technology Institute at New America and Public Knowledge spoke with staffers of the FCC Wireless Bureau, Office of Economics and Analytics and others about their request for handset unlocking requirements for T-Mobile as part of its proposed buy of Mint Mobile (see 2402060025). “Consumer advocates have long argued that mobile phones should come unlocked by default, allowing users to more easily make choices about the device and service they purchase, as they can for most products,” said a filing posted Thursday in docket 23-171. They noted that the U.K.’s Office of Communications has required mobile phones to be sold unlocked there since 2021. Ofcom found that “more than a third of people who decided against switching said having to get a handset unlocked put them off" changing providers, which “means they could be missing out on a better deal,” the groups said.

Industry associations called for a voluntary cyber trust mark program during a meeting with aides to FCC Commissioner Geoffrey Starks. Commissioners are set to vote on a cyber mark program March 14 (see 2402210057). “There is broad support in the record for the idea that flexible, voluntary, risk-based best practices are the hallmarks of IoT security as it exists today and as it is being developed and iterated upon around the world,” said a filing posted Thursday in docket 23-239. Groups at the meeting were CTA, the Connectivity Standards Alliance, CTIA, the National Electrical Manufacturers Association, USTelecom and the Association of Home Appliance Manufacturers.

CommScope is supporting third-party open radio access network distributed units for customers using its distributed antenna and small-cell systems. CommScope also said Wednesday it’s “seamlessly supporting” ORAN on in-building radios. Traditionally, ORAN “has focused on enhancing macro and outdoor networks, but we’ve extended these benefits to indoor networks to offer unprecedented flexibility in delivering on-premises 5G coverage, capacity, and control for both public and private networks,” said Upendra Pingle, CommScope senior vice president-intelligent cellular networks.

CTIA urged the FCC to refine the broadband data collection (BDC) process (see 2402200073). “For the mobile challenge process, the data indicate that the Commission has created a user-friendly process and that providers have submitted more accurate and granular maps,” CTIA said in comments posted Wednesday in docket 19-195: “At the same time, the Commission should adopt refinements to the mobile challenge process to help improve accuracy.” Among the changes CTIA sought were more flexibility and clarity in how “providers may use infrastructure data to rebut challenges” improving the stability and reliability of the FCC speed test app. Wireless ISP Association members are frustrated with how the process is working on required interactions between challengers and providers. “In some cases, the challenger simply does not want to engage with the provider or be shown that its methodology may be inferior,” WISPA said. “The challenger will not concede the disputed locations and would rather have the [Broadband Data Task Force] decide because there is no incentive for the challenger to voluntarily acquiesce to the provider’s data or methodologies,” the group said.

AT&T supports supplemental coverage from space, provided terrestrial wireless is protected, the carrier said in a meeting with FCC Wireless Bureau and Office of Engineering and Technology staffers. “AT&T emphasized its longstanding support for the concept of using space-based solutions to provide supplemental connectivity for wireless subscribers,” said a filing, posted Tuesday in docket 23-65: “AT&T agrees with the overarching concept in the NPRM that there needs to be a lease agreement in place between an SCS operator and its terrestrial partner in order to authorize SCS.”

The FCC Public Safety Bureau approved a request by the Huron County, Ohio, Emergency Management Agency for a wireless emergency alert test March 19. The agency notes in its waiver requests the county has suffered train derailments and incidents of bad weather and wants to ensure it can “alert the large number of tourists” expected for the April 8 “Great North American Eclipse,” the bureau said Tuesday. “We are persuaded it is in the public interest to allow Huron County to conduct a test of its WEA capabilities,” the bureau said in docket 15-91: “Such testing will not only provide needed training, it will help Huron County to gain confidence in using its WEA capabilities.”

The Wright State University Foundation, altafiber and Nokia opened a 5G test lab in Fairborn, Ohio, known as Studio 5G, according to a Tuesday news release. The lab provides “a hands-on environment to educate businesses about indoor and outdoor 4G and 5G technology” increasingly used in private networks, the release said: “Private wireless 5G technology, like LTE, provides more coverage with greater reliability, deeper penetration with lower latency, and is more secure than typical Wi-Fi networks deployed today.”

AT&T's application programmable interfaces (APIs) accelerator program is open for business, AT&T said Tuesday. “Our vision is to give you access to a selection of production and experimental Network APIs in a space where you can explore their benefits and technical performance at scale; develop solutions backed by the power of our network; and build the future we’ve all dreamt of,” said Stephanie Ormston, AT&T assistant vice president-technology and digital services integration. “For developers, think of it as a new and more powerful way of developing apps,” she said.

The Wireless ISP Association is asking NTIA to finish its study of the 37 GHz band within three months so that the FCC “can complete its work to make the spectrum available as soon as possible for rural broadband deployment and other purposes.” The 37.0-37.6 GHz band was one of five bands targeted for further study in the national spectrum strategy (see 2311130048). “In addition to fostering American innovation and technical leadership,” the band “can promote rural broadband deployment,” WISPA said. “Accelerating” a study of the band “will allow the FCC to implement a non-exclusive licensing scheme that promotes shared use and deployment among federal and commercial users, while providing federal users with protection from harmful interference,” the group said.