FCC Commissioner Mike O’Rielly is keeping his plans for the 3.5 GHz citizens broadband radio service band close to his chest. O’Rielly said last week he has started to share his long-awaited proposal with Chairman Ajit Pai (see 1807120033). Some industry officials who favor smaller geographic license sizes for the priority access licenses that will be offered in the band are hearing that O’Rielly is proposing a plan similar to what was proposed by CTIA and the Competitive Carriers Association. Other industry and FCC officials urged caution before drawing conclusions but said the proposal seems unlikely to get the full support of the commission, especially Commissioner Jessica Rosenworcel.
CBRS
The Citizens Broadband Radio Service (CBRS) is designated unlicensed spectrum in the 3.5 GHz band created by the FCC as part of an effort to allow for shared federal and non-federal use of the band.
A heated dispute over FCC changes to informal complaint procedures overshadowed commissioners' 3-1 approval of an order to streamline formal complaint processes. Dissenter Jessica Rosenworcel said the order effectively removes the agency from working to resolve informal complaints against companies, forcing consumers unsatisfied by company responses to file a formal complaint costing $225. "This is bonkers. No one should be asked to pay $225 for this agency to do its job," she said at Thursday's commissioners' meeting.
The FCC should approve larger geographic license sizes for the priority access licenses it sells as part of the 3.5 GHz citizens broadband radio service band (CBRS), CTIA said in docket 17-258. Under current rules, the licenses would be sold as census tracts. “A new report by Analysys Mason shows that the current licensing scheme … with 74,000 separate license areas … and an average population of 4,400 per area, is significantly smaller than the license areas used for comparable spectrum in the rest of the world,” CTIA said. “The Commission should move expeditiously to make mid-band spectrum available for flexible use, and it should release the spectrum with rules that will support next-generation networks. Nations around the world are adopting larger license sizes as a way to promote prompt and efficient buildout of 5G networks.”
FCC Commissioner Mike O’Rielly said he's nearing a recommendation on the 3.5 GHz citizens broadband radio service band, speaking Thursday to reporters after a speech at the Free State Foundation on process changes. The 180-day shot clock on deal approval “should be more than aspirational,” O’Rielly said, with several takeovers still pending before the regulator. “We can make decisions with a set time frame.”
ATIS and the Citizens Broadband Radio Service Alliance announced a development they say will make use of the 3.5 GHz band more commercially viable. The work was done by ATIS’ International Mobile Subscriber Identity Oversight Council. The IMSI council oversees U.S. assignment of IMSI numbers, a 15-digit international identifier that allows for network roaming. In collaboration with the CBRS Alliance, “ATIS developed an innovative new IMSI code that is specifically allocated for use by CBRS spectrum operators," they said Tuesday. The council “will also begin administration of an IMSI Block Number (IBN), under the oversight of the IMSI Administrator, iconectiv,” they said. “The IBN will be assigned to CBRS spectrum operators to support the implementation of network services. This work is essential for utilizing CBRS for LTE services while also advancing IoT applications.”
CTIA urged the FCC to move away from census tracts for priority access licenses (PALs) to be auctioned in the 3.5 GHz citizens broadband radio service band, in favor of the April compromise proposed by it and the Competitive Carriers Association (see 1804230064). Some “continue to call for the use of census tract PALs for all or some of the PALs,” but census tracts would be administratively burdensome, lead to interference concerns, increase the cost of deployment, hurt rural investment, lead to economic inefficiencies, “impede and delay access to spectrum” and “significantly reduce the value of the CBRS band,” CTIA said Friday in docket 17-258. “An auction that includes census tract licensing -- be it for all 70 megahertz of licensed spectrum in the 3.5 GHz band or only a portion -- will necessarily result in delayed deployment.” The filing hadn't been posted by the FCC.
The Public Interest Spectrum Coalition (PISC) urged the FCC not to change rules for the 3.5 GHz citizens broadband radio service band to take spectrum away from the general authorized access tier or approve priority access licenses larger than counties. “It is likely that many users will rely on both PAL and GAA spectrum,” the group said. “The current PAL rules allow rural and small ISPs, individual business facilities and venues, and public-purpose networks -- including schools, libraries, college campuses and municipal services -- to leverage access to both interference-protected and GAA spectrum.” PISC met with aides to Chairman Ajit Pai and Commissioners Mike O’Rielly and Brendan Carr, said a filing in docket 17-258.
A Wednesday Senate Commerce Committee oversight hearing with NTIA Administrator David Redl will likely -- to varying degrees -- focus on the federal spectrum policies of President Donald Trump's administration (see 1806120056), improving national broadband map data accuracy and the 2016 Internet Assigned Numbers Authority transition, said lawmakers and communications sector experts in interviews. The hearing will begin at 2:30 p.m. in 253 Russell. It's Redl's first before Senate Commerce since his November confirmation (see 1711070076, 1711070084 and 1711080015). Redl also testified during a March House Communications Subcommittee hearing.
CTIA asked the FCC to act on changes to rules for the 3.5 GHz citizens broadband radio service band at the July 12 commissioners' meeting. The Wednesday letter by President Meredith Baker said unless the FCC acts soon, the U.S. will fall behind other countries in the race to 5G. CTIA asked the FCC to approve rules based on its April proposal made with the Competitive Carriers Association (see 1804240067). The Public Interest Spectrum Coalition (PISC) pushed for small priority access licenses (PALs) in the band, with no major changes from the Obama administration rules.
FCC Commissioners Mike O’Rielly and Jessica Rosenworcel, appearing together at a WifiForward event, agreed the FCC needs to make more spectrum available for Wi-Fi. Both expressed impatience with the slow pace of opening the 5.9 GHz band for sharing with Wi-Fi. O’Rielly said later he doesn’t have a firm timetable for the release of proposed rules for the 3.5 GHz citizens broadband radio service band.