Wireless Telecommunications

The Federal Communications Commission's Office of Engineering and Technology (OET) conditionally approved AXON Networks to operate an automated frequency coordination (AFC) system to manage access to 6 GHz band spectrum by standard-power unlicensed devices. Under this conditional approval, AXON Networks will not be permitted to begin commercial operation of its AFC system until it completes a rigorous testing process, which may begin immediately. This process will require that AXON Networks’ AFC system undergo both lab testing and a public trial.

Federal Communications Commission Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel proposed urgent action to safeguard the nation’s communications systems from real and present cybersecurity threats, including from state-sponsored cyber actors from the People’s Republic of China.

The Federal Communications Commission is taking steps to address vulnerabilities in US telecommunications networks following the Salt Typhoon cyberattack, a sophisticated intrusion linked to foreign state-sponsored actors. These measures aim to safeguard critical communications infrastructure and ensure national security, public safety, and economic resilience in the future:

An evaluation of a co-equal sharing framework to allow Federal and non-Federal users to deploy systems in the 37.0-37.6 GHz (Lower 37 GHz) band. The scope of this report is limited to sharing between Federal and non-Federal operations. The report assumes that the Federal Communications Commission will establish site-based authorizations for non-Federal licensees, but the report does not attempt to address how the FCC will regulate sharing between and among non-Federal systems.

The Federal Communications Commission's Space Bureau granted the application of Space Exploration Holdings, LLC (SpaceX) to construct, deploy, and operate a constellation of second generation non-geostationary orbit (NGSO) fixed-satellite service (FSS) satellites, known as its Gen2 Starlink constellation.

5G users report higher performance satisfaction than 4G users, but face issues in high-traffic locations, meaning that 4 in 10 users are no longer willing to accept best-effort 5G performance. Further, 35 percent of surveyed 5G users show a growing appetite for elevated connectivity beyond standard 5G performance, signaling a strong willingness to adopt and pay extra for differentiated connectivity. So, what can differentiated connectivity do for them?

The Justice Department and a group of states asked a federal court to force Google to sell Chrome, its popular web browser, a move that could fundamentally alter the $2 trillion company’s business and reshape competition on the internet. The request follows a landmark ruling in August by Judge Amit P. Mehta of the U.S.

The Federal Communications Commission has voted to revise its satellite spectrum sharing rules to promote market entry, regulatory certainty, and spectrum efficiency. The Report and Order released on November 15th refines the FCC’s non-geostationary satellite orbit, fixed-satellite service (NGSO FSS) spectrum sharing regime that provides clarity regarding sharing between systems licensed in different processing rounds, granting primary spectrum access to systems approved earlier, while enabling new entrants to participate in an established, cooperative spectrum sharing structure.

In an increasingly congested wireless spectrum, conflict is both inevitable but often resolvable. Between commercial applications (e.g., terrestrial and non-terrestrial wireless communications, navigation, and telemetry), scientific activities (e.g., radio astronomy, polar research, earth observation), and other vital spectrum-dependent uses (e.g., air traffic control), competition for spectrum access will only increase with new and emerging applications and technologies.

With USCellular's agreement to sell AT&T $1.018 billion of spectrum, all three of the major mobile operators "have taken a chunk" of the rural carrier's assets. The agreement includes the sale of 1,250M MHz-Pops of 3.45 GHz and 331M MHz-Pops of 700 MHz B/C block licenses to AT&T. This spectrum will likely enable AT&T to layer in better coverage on its existing 5G footprint. The sale, once approved by regulators, will add additional spectrum to AT&T's existing bandwidth to improve overall coverage. The 700 MHz band is valuable for distance coverage.