The FCC Wireless Bureau approved two waiver requests from Sprint allowing the carrier to deploy 800 MHz wideband operations in parts of Northern California and Nevada National Public Safety Planning Advisory Committee (NPSPAC) regions before the ongoing 800 MHz band reconfiguration is completed there. Granting the waivers “will permit LTE deployment in most of the counties within the Northern California and Nevada NPSPAC regions, providing Sprint’s subscribers access to these valuable broadband wireless services while protecting the remaining public safety entity from harmful interference,” the bureau said (http://bit.ly/1v2e3BV), saying taking the step is in the public interest. The 800 MHz rebanding is complete in both regions, except for two sites licensed to San Bernardino County in Northern California and one site licensed to the county in Nevada, the bureau said.

The FCC fined Indigo Wireless $39,000 for failing to offer to consumers the required number or percentage of hearing-aid compatible handsets in 2009. In December 2010, the FCC issued a notice of apparent liability for that amount against the carrier. In a response, Indigo questioned whether it was in violation and argued that the amount of the fine was “excessive, arbitrary, and would cause financial hardship to the company,” said an Enforcement Bureau order released Friday (http://bit.ly/1rqvI5W). The bureau said it found “no basis for cancellation or reduction of the proposed forfeiture.” The bureau disputed Indigo’s contention that any violation was not willful. “Willful noncompliance is not predicated on a finding of knowledge or intent to violate the law,” the bureau said. The fine is not out of line, said the bureau: “A carrier’s failure to offer the requisite number or percentage of digital hearing aid-compatible handset models can never be regarded as a minor violation, given the significance of the requirement.” Indigo had no comment.

The value of spectrum in the upcoming AWS-3 and TV incentive auctions is hard to predict and is based on more factors than growing demands for wireless data, said Citi analysts including Michael Rollins in a research report Sunday. The value of spectrum is also affected by the number of cell sites a carrier deploys and technology, Rollins wrote. “There is an economic trade-off between buying spectrum vs. building more sites,” he said. “In effect, the economic value of spectrum is tethered to the benefit of avoided cell site costs to serve the data traffic growth.” Rollins offered projected revenue for the auctions, predicting that a 10x10 MHz block will bring in $1.97 per MHz-POP; a 5x5 block, $1.20/MHz-POP; 10 MHz uplink spectrum, $0.87/MHz-POP; and 5 MHz uplink spectrum, $0.53/MHz-POP.

The FCC asked for comment on a Land Mobile Communications Council proposal that the agency extend conditional licensing authority to applicants for Part 90 site-based licenses in the 470-512 MHz and 800/900 MHz bands. But the Wireless and Public Safety bureaus refused to give LMCC a waiver it also sought pending the completion of a rulemaking (http://bit.ly/1nx8Ted). The LMCC asked for the change in a May 15 petition, arguing that it would provide greater flexibility for applicants “without compromising the quality of service available in T-Band or in the 800/900 MHz bands” (http://bit.ly/V64jw2). If approved, applicants could start using the spectrum while their applications are before the FCC, provided certain conditions are met, the LMCC said. The bureaus said Monday most applicants seeking a new station or to modify an existing public land mobile radio (PLMR) station below 470 MHz are permitted to operate the proposed station during the application’s pendency for a period of up to 180 days, stating 10 days after the application is submitted to the commission. This flexibility is not allowed for applicants in the PLMR bands above 470 MHz. LMCC said in its petition the distinction no longer makes sense. Comments are due July 23, replies Aug. 7.

The FCC Office of Engineering and Technology Monday asked for comment on a public trial of Comsearch’s TV white spaces database. The trial ended April 9. Comsearch told the FCC in a June report that during the 45-day trial, 63 different parties visited its site, with seven offering comments (http://bit.ly/1j8b85e). Comments to the FCC are due July 8, replies July 15, OET said in a public notice (http://bit.ly/1pbzvXL).

LTE subscribers use “dramatically larger amounts of data than 3G subscribers,” Mobidia Technology said Monday in a report. LTE subscribers in Hong Kong averaged nearly 100 percent more data consumption than 3G subscribers during the first four months of 2014, the period covered by the report. LTE subscribers in Japan, South Korea and the U.S. had the top average data usage per subscriber, with subscribers in Japan using 3 GB per month during the study period, Mobidia said. LTE subscribers are also becoming increasingly reliant on Wi-Fi, with 75 to 90 percent of all mobile data usage from LTE phones occurring on Wi-Fi networks in major LTE markets (http://bit.ly/1izWbOr).

Carriers need certainty on when post-auction payments are due following the AWS-3 auction, CTIA said in reply comments to the commission. Uncertainty makes planning for the auction difficult for carriers likely to spend “millions, or even billions of dollars” for AWS-3 licenses, CTIA said Monday in a filing in docket 14-78 (http://bit.ly/1lLh1JV). “Uncertainty regarding payment deadlines could complicate and/or determine how capital is raised, how cash flow is managed, and how financials are reported,” CTIA said. “With such obstacles, full auction participation may be discouraged.” Specifically, the FCC should clarify that down payments and final payments are both due in 2015. The auction is to start Nov. 13. CTIA said auctions like the AWS-3 auction generally run one or two months.

T-Mobile’s unlimited data plans for music streaming with Rhapsody’s new unRadio service is the “latest example of ISPs using data caps to undermine net neutrality,” said Michael Weinberg, Public Knowledge vice president, in a blog post included in a Friday email to PK supporters (http://bit.ly/1pnVVmd). Some net neutrality experts are worried the deal gives less credibility to data caps, while others see the partnership as a victory for consumers (CD June 20 p8). T-Mobile has joined AT&T and Comcast as ISPs that use “data caps as a pretext to manipulate how its users experience the internet,” said Weinberg.

T-Mobile representatives explained their May 27 petition seeking guidance on data roaming rules, in a meeting Wednesday with FCC Wireless Bureau Chief Roger Sherman and other commission officials. The carrier sought “predictable” enforcement criteria for determining whether the terms of data roaming agreements meet the “commercially reasonable” standard adopted by the commission in its 2011 data roaming order (http://bit.ly/Ry0kWn). “The limited intervention and guidance sought by T-Mobile will provide necessary clarity for individualized negotiations and help all parties better evaluate the commercial reasonableness of offered terms,” T-Mobile said, according to an ex parte filing posted Friday in docket 05-265.

The FCC should take “early steps” to release information on interference complaints and investigations, including those voluntarily resolved by the affected parties, said a white paper released by the FCC Technological Advisory Council’s Spectrum Receiver Performance Working Group. “Whether interference is harmful or not is technically complex and highly subjective.” The paper examined the future of interference enforcement. The communications world is changing, with terrestrial wireless systems relying on low-power base stations proving coverage “over small areas on an interference-limited basis,” the paper noted (http://bit.ly/SXCK5R). Another big development is the emergence of Wi-Fi and other unlicensed systems. “Today’s low power/low antenna height network architectures, coupled with the high mobility and low power of individual end user devices, make spectrum monitoring from a limited number of fixed locations problematic,” the paper said. “It also necessitates more sensitive mobile and portable monitoring devices that can process signals from devices that operate with multiple, sophisticated waveforms on multiple channels in multiple bands on a highly dynamic basis.” The paper outlined areas for future work by TAC. The council should examine the potential costs and benefits of a “Public-Private Partnership that would serve as a forum for the voluntary sharing of information on interference incidents in a systematic fashion,” the paper said. TAC should also identify, analyze and recommend “new strategies for interference resolution and enforcement” and investigate the changing radiofrequency noise floor “and its impact on wireless services,” the report said. The principal author was Dale Hatfield, former chief of the FCC Office of Engineering and Technology and former acting NTIA administrator.