5G Coalition pushes 12 GHz

As the battle over the use of the 12.2 GHz to 12.7 GHz rages, the 5G for 12 GHz Coalition once again said that the Federal Communication Commission should change its rules and allow terrestrial 5G transmission in this frequency band. Current rules allow for downlink only use for satellite TV. The push for 12 GHz began in October 2020 with a letter to then-FCC Chairman Ajit Pai. Since that time, incumbents AT&T and SpaceX have opposed the shared spectrum use on grounds that terrestrial 5G would interfere with their services, disrupting transmissions to customers. Another incumbent, DISH, is part of the coalition because it’s building a 5G network and already has licenses in the band for its satellite TV services. Keep in mind that a rule change is still needed for SpaceX to use the 12 GHz band for its 12,000 Starlink for internet access. Current rules allow for downlink transmission only, so Starlink uses frequencies outside 12.2 GHz to 12.7 GHz for its internet services. The coalition argues that Starlink has 1500 MHz of spectrum available for its use that’s outside of the 500 MHz in question and 5G services should have permission to use it.