Ligado defended its proposal to reallocate the 1675-1680 MHz band for 5G, as it urged previously in 2019 (see 1905090041). The company filed reply comments posted Tuesday in docket 19-116. The FCC in January sought to refresh the record on the future of the band for shared use between federal incumbents and nonfederal fixed or mobile operations. Other parties continue to raise questions, as they did in the initial comment round (see 2503030045).
The FCC will likely take an "all or nothing" approach toward its proposed $4.5 million fine against Telnyx, rather than settle with the firm somewhere in between, Telephone Consumer Protection Act lawyers told us. The notice of apparent liability issued last month (see 2503050026) faces strong pushback from Telnyx and parts of the voice service provider industry (see 2503110023). The NAL also netted Free State Foundation criticism (see 2503120071). Many said the Telnyx fine fight shows the need for FCC clarity about the "know your customer" (KYC) process.
FCC Commissioner Geoffrey Starks’ announcement Tuesday that he plans to resign from the commission in the spring (see 2503180009) is already prompting speculation about potential successors, despite there not being an obvious front-runner. Some officials voiced renewed concerns about whether President Donald Trump will use the upcoming vacancy as an opportunity to erode FCC norms, either by not filling Starks’ role or picking a Democratic nominee who hews more closely to the administration’s telecom policy priorities.
Departures at NTIA: BEAD Director Evan Feinman and Jennifer Manner, senior adviser-space and satellite policy ... Morgan Lewis names Loyaan Egal, ex-FCC official, as partner-telecommunications, media and technology practice ... AI and cloud firm CoreWeave appoints Meg Whitman, ex-CEO of eBay and Hewlett Packard, as independent board member, chair-nominating and corporate governance committee, and member-audit committee ... MediaJustice names Jacinta Gonzalez, formerly Mijente, head of programs, a new post.
The full FCC should overturn the Media Bureau’s dismissal of the Media and Democracy Project’s petition to deny against Fox’s WTXF Philadelphia, MAD said in a response filing in docket 25-11 Monday. Fox argued earlier this month that the FCC should affirm the Media Bureau order, which came under previous FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel. Current Chairman Brendan Carr reinstated petitions against NBC, ABC, and CBS that Rosenworcel had dismissed but didn't resurrect MAD's Fox petition. MAD conceded in a news release Monday that “it's unlikely" Carr "will move quickly to review MAD's appeal.” Fox said MAD “has sought to treat Fox 29 Philadelphia as collateral in its efforts to punish Fox 29 Philadelphia’s corporate parent for speech disfavored by MAD that never even aired on the broadcast station.” The bureau order dismissing MAD’s petition “properly applied the Communications Act and FCC precedent,” Fox added. It continued that MAD hasn’t identified Fox conduct that is relevant to the FCC character standards.
The Electronic Privacy Information Center and other groups are backing a National Consumer League petition (see 2502200004) for the full 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals to rehear a case on the FCC's one-to-one telemarketing consent rule. An 11th Circuit panel previously held that the FCC exceeded its authority with the rule. In a proposed amicus brief Friday (docket 24-10277), EPIC and others said the one-to-one consent rule is an effective anti-robocall tool that doesn't hurt business because it only restricts how Telephone Consumer Protection Act consents can be obtained and bars their resale. The groups said the panel's reasoning could undo long-standing consumer protections, such as written consent for telemarketing robocalls. Also behind the EPIC filing were Consumer Federation of America, Public Knowledge and the National Association of State Utility Consumer Advocates.
Verizon representatives met with FCC Wireless Bureau staff to discuss the spectral dynamics of the citizens broadband radio service band. While higher allowed equivalent isotropically radiated power (EIRP) levels create “larger cells, which offer more coverage area, propagation losses are identical, regardless of power level,” said a filing posted Monday in docket 17-258. “The propagation ‘slope’ dictates the ratio of cell edge (cell size area) to interfered area. … This ratio (interference area/cell area) is the same regardless of cell size or allowed EIRP.”
Field Radio Systems asked the FCC to certify it as a commercial operator license examination manager. The company “specializes in off-grid and field communication solutions, providing both equipment and educational training for amateur radio operators, communities, and industry professionals,” said an undocketed filing posted Monday: “We operate a robust Learning Management System for administering technical training and certification courses.”
A lawyer for the International Bridge, Tunnel & Turnpike Association spoke with an aide to FCC Chairman Brendan Carr to ask about adding a question to the commission's draft notice of inquiry on alternatives to GPS for positioning, navigation and timing (PNT). Commissioners are slated to vote on the NOI on March 27 (see 2503060061). NextNav’s proposal for PNT in the 900 MHz band has long been controversial. The NOI should ask about “interference implications for incumbent spectrum users associated with any of the PNT solutions discussed in this NOI,” the association said in a filing posted Monday in docket 25-110. “The addition of this question will produce a more complete record to support Commission decision-making.”
Starry representatives provided an update on the company’s operations and the importance of the 37 GHz band in a meeting with an aide to FCC Chairman Brendan Carr. The band is critical “for serving a variety of use cases, especially the band’s unique capacity to enable robust broadband services, including gigabit fixed broadband,” said a filing posted Monday in docket 24-243. Starry “encouraged the Commission to continue its efforts to make spectrum available for innovative wireless services by finalizing the sharing rules for the Lower 37 GHz Band in the near term.” The 37 GHz band was the topic of a DOD study completed last year as part of the Joe Biden administration’s national spectrum strategy (see 2412030057). In August, the FCC released a public notice about the band's future (see 2408090034).