FCC Chairman Brendan Carr appoints Bradley Craigmyle, formerly U.S. House of Representatives, as the agency's deputy general counsel ... Changes at Ericsson: Per Narvinger is promoted to executive vice president and replaces Fredrik Jejdling as head-business area networks; Jenny Lindqvist becomes head-business area cloud software and services; Yossi Cohen promoted to head-market area Americas; Patrick Johansson advanced to head-market area Europe, Middle East and Africa … DLA Piper taps Julie Kearney, ex-FCC, as co-chair-space exploration and innovation practice and partner-telecom group … Rep. Haley Stevens, D-Mich., named House co-chair of Congressional Internet Caucus ... Telesat Government Solutions adds Wayne Sullens, ex-Aerospace Corp., as senior director-U.S. government programs.
The FCC made clear in denying Intelsat reimbursement costs related to an earth station site outside the U.S. that C-band relocation expenses involving foreign facilities aren't reimbursable, the C-band relocation payment clearinghouse (RPC) said Tuesday. In a docket 21-333 reply to Anuvu, the RPC said the agency's language is clear that the Intelsat denial also covers Anuvu's German earth station. In its appeal of the RPC's initial denial of $961,000 in reimbursement claims, Anuvu said the Intelsat language addresses a specific proposal involving construction of new satellite telemetry, tracking and control facilities, and not all types of potential transition expenses.
FCC Administrative Law Judge Jane Halprin should rule that low-power radio and TV station owner Antonio Cesar Guel lacks the character to hold an FCC license and order him to cease and desist from “operating, controlling, managing or providing any assistance” to any FCC-licensed station, said the Enforcement Bureau in filings in the hearing proceeding (docket 23-267) posted this week. “The preponderance of the evidence” shows that Guel engaged in a sham transfer of his stations to his 17-year-old niece, falsely claimed to be an American citizen repeatedly, and made multiple false statements to the agency for years, even during the current ALJ proceeding, the EB said. Guel has also admitted to many, but not all, of the allegations against him and unsuccessfully sought a summary judgment order to end the proceeding. In depositions and testimony during the hearing proceeding, Guel, his niece and his daughter Maria Guel gave multiple conflicting statements about Antonio Guel’s relationship and level of control of multiple companies and licensees, including Mekaddesh Group Corporation, the Hispanic Family Christian Network and the Hispanic Christian Community Network. All those entities operate from the same address. “Given Mr. Guel’s pattern of brazen material misrepresentations to the Commission,” a cease and desist order “is not only legally authorized, it is necessary,” the EB said. The bureau's filings also ask Halprin to impose a forfeiture against Guel.
Summit Ridge updated the FCC on the pending closure of the 3.45 GHz relocation reimbursement clearinghouse (see 2501070073), expected this weekend. “Summit Ridge will deliver an audit of Clearinghouse financials covering the period from March 15, 2024 (the ending date of the prior audited financials) through closing … no later than March 15,” said a filing posted Tuesday in docket 19-348. All band incumbents “have been reimbursed for the approved clearing costs and have confirmed they have no additional costs to submit or objections to raise.” Summit Ridge will "follow any remaining wind-down activities as instructed” by the Wireless Bureau, the filing said.
Rural Wireless Association representatives discussed 5G Fund issues, including the importance of waiting for the BEAD program to play out before deciding where money is most needed, in a meeting with an aide to FCC Chairman Brendan Carr. RWA also asked that the FCC “not take into account areas where T-Mobile plans to build 5G … as part of the conditional approval of its acquisition of Sprint,” said a filing this week in docket 20-32. “RWA noted that T-Mobile's six-year 5G deployment milestone deadlines, pursuant to the T-Mobile-Sprint merger approval, end on April 1, 2026,” the filing said. That deadline is 13 months away, “and by the time a reverse auction is initiated, these deadlines will have passed making any such pre-auction commitments unnecessary and incredibly anticompetitive.” RWA discussed the benefits of waiting for supplemental coverage from space to “develop beyond text messaging and voice services and how this emerging mobility service can enhance connectivity in underserved areas cost effectively without the need” for 5G Fund support.
Federated Wireless executives spoke with an aide to FCC Commissioner Geoffrey Starks about the company’s support for some changes to citizens broadband radio service rules, but its opposition to allowing some devices to operate at higher power levels. Federated “articulated its support for codification of the processes that are being used to manage CBRS spectrum access, greater harmonization of the CBRS rules with adjacent bands, and strengthening of the rules that would facilitate use of AI and other advanced tools to maximize efficient use of CBRS spectrum by a wide range of use cases and business models,” said a filing posted Tuesday in docket 17-258. Federated has been making the rounds at the FCC, with company representatives meeting last week with an aide to Chairman Brendan Carr.
The FCC Office of Engineering and Technology sought comment Tuesday on a Tesla request for a waiver of FCC rules to allow authorization for an ultra-wideband (UWB) positioning system operating in the 7.5-8.5 GHz frequency range “to facilitate wireless charging of electric vehicles.” Comments are due March 27, replies April 11, in docket 25-101. “Tesla describes how it intends to use an impulse radio UWB system to enable peer-to-peer communications between a UWB transceiver installed on an EV and a second UWB transceiver installed on a ground-level pad -- which could be located outdoors -- to achieve optimal positioning to enable wireless charging for the EV,” OET said.
FCC Commissioner Anna Gomez’s criticism of potential FCC action on Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act “would be more credible” if she had ever expressed concern or regret about former President Joe Biden’s administration “bullying” social media companies, said Free State Foundation CEO Randolph May in a blog post Tuesday. Any FCC action on 230 “would be done in an open manner and be subject to public scrutiny,” May wrote. “Of course, this is much different than the hidden behind closed door efforts of the Biden administration that took place via private emails and telephone conversations.” The U.S. Supreme Court’s rolling back of Chevron deference also means courts “likely won’t simply defer to the FCC’s views,” he said. “I would find Ms. Gomez['s] professions of alarm regarding her claims of ‘bullying’ more persuasive had she sounded the alarm bells regarding the previous administration's content suppression efforts.”
House Republican Study Committee Chairman August Pfluger of Texas confirmed to us Tuesday that FCC Chairman Brendan Carr will speak at the group’s Wednesday lunch meeting. Lobbyists noted reports that Carr would brief RSC about the commission’s investigation of Audacy’s KCBS San Francisco concerning the station’s broadcasting locations and identifying details of vehicles involved in an undercover Immigration and Customs Enforcement operation in January (see 2502050051).
FCC Chairman Brendan Carr’s warning letters to media companies are “a new and coercive technique” for agency action “without needing to follow the niceties of commission votes and judicial review,” and an agency opinion on tech platform liability would likely follow the same pattern, wrote former FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler in a post Tuesday for the Brookings Institution. Rather than aiming at the deregulation often emphasized by conservatives, Carr is increasing the regulatory reach of the FCC “to attack corporate decisions he and [President] Donald Trump do not like,” Wheeler said. “Acting through coercion rather than regulation appears to be a workaround of the limits placed on agency authority by recent Supreme Court decisions sought by conservatives.” Rather than using agency processes to investigate matters and build a record, Carr is “unilaterally reaching a conclusion” and initiating enforcement proceedings, Wheeler said. “While this may be possible under the agency’s procedures, the result is anything but procedural and transparent.”