The decisions the FCC makes in the net neutrality proceeding have implications for spectrum, as the FCC also looks at the future use of bands above 24 GHz, said a filing by Nokia posted by the FCC in docket 14-28. Ulrich Rehfuess, Nokia spectrum policy leader, was at the FCC to brief staff on European spectrum policy, but he ended up fielding questions on “applicability of European initiatives to analogous US proceedings,” Nokia said. “Nokia specifically noted that the ability to prioritize traffic based on the application or service, or the ability to create specialized classes of services is critical to the development of technologies requiring very low latency, large throughput, and minimal packet loss including autonomous driving and streaming of live broadcast events,” the company said. “Nokia reiterated its views that the Commission should not reclassify broadband under Title II of the Communications Act and must allow for flexibility to offer specialized services that provide prioritization for traffic associated with particularly sensitive applications and services.” Among those at the meeting for the FCC were Julius Knapp, chief of the Office of Engineering and Technology, and John Leibovitz, deputy chief of the Wireless Bureau, Nokia said.

Shipments of smartphones with near-field communications capability built in will jump at a 55.8 percent compound annual growth rate through 2019, said a report available for sale from the research firm TechNavio. NFC technology "has revolutionized the ways in which people access and use data and information," the report said. "NFC-enabled devices can be used for applications such as mobile payment, loyalty programs, interactive advertising, ID authentication, and transit fare collection."

CTIA called “misconceived” Neustar’s claims that Ericsson’s connections to the association influenced its support for Ericsson subsidiary Telcordia's selection as the next local number portability administrator, said an ex parte filing. Neustar wrote the FCC Tuesday in another ex parte filing, saying Ericsson President Angel Ruiz is secretary of CTIA’s board. "CTIA’s advocacy reflects the point of view of the largest wireless carriers who have strategic or commercial reasons” for Telcordia’s selection, Neustar wrote. CTIA responded that it’s “no secret that CTIA is a trade association that represents its members’ interests -- including twenty-six carriers that serve more than 96 percent of the nation’s wireless customers. ... Neustar evidently does not think its own advocacy should be discounted simply because of its obvious personal stake in this proceeding.”

The FCC sought comment Friday on its Technological Advisory Council’s Dec. 4 report on mobile device theft prevention. The Wireless Bureau and Office of Engineering and Technology sought general comment on recommendations in the report, “with a particular emphasis on recommendations for industry that can be implemented in the near term to provide timely benefits to consumers,” the agency said. Mobile device theft has been a top focus for the TAC and for FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler (see 1403110031). Comments are due Jan. 30, replies Feb. 17.

Proponents of an industry road map for improving location accuracy for wireless calls made indoors explained details of the proposal at a meeting at the FCC, said an ex parte filing posted Friday in docket 07-114. The plan was unveiled last month by AT&T, APCO, CTIA, the National Emergency Number Association, Sprint, T-Mobile and Verizon (see 1411190064). The meeting focused on the “formation of a test bed, dispatchable location commitments, improvements in and deployments of horizontal location technologies, steps to advance vertical location technologies providing back-up solutions for indoor calls, and metrics and deliverables,” the filing said. The industry representatives met with officials from the FCC's Disability Rights Office and the Public Safety Bureau, the filing said. AARP said in a filing that the agency should move forward on its own proposal for location accuracy rules laid out in a February NPRM (see 1402210038). "The carriers’ agreement does not provide accountability or assurance that its plan would be effective," AARP said. "The FCC’s proposed rules provide specific, fair and measurable requirements for indoor location accuracy." AT&T fired a shot at the Find Me 911 coalition and TruePosition over their arguments against the road map. “TruePosition and its fully-controlled FindMe911 coalition is at it again, spreading misinformation and ill-informed criticisms of the APCO, NENA [National Emergency Number Association], and Wireless Industry Roadmap for Improving Location Accuracy,” said Joe Marx, assistant vice president-federal regulatory, in a blog post Friday. He countered arguments that the industry proposal is based on untested technologies. “Wi-Fi and Bluetooth technologies have been in use for years in commercial location services, and are central to the current wireless ecosystem in ways that will drive strong incentives for further innovation and lasting relevance for years to come,” he said. “The phone companies seem to think if they repeat what is not true often enough, people will ignore the actual wording of the plan they proposed,” said Jamie Barnett, lawyer at Venable who represents the coalition. “Here is what is absolutely true: before the roadmap, the phone companies were against the FCC’s proposed rules because it would hold them accountable. Now they are for the roadmap because it will allow the phone companies to escape accountability for location accuracy. No one should be fooled by this Trojan Horse.” The road map does propose use of untested technologies, relying on creation of a "National Emergency Address Database,” he said. “Instead of enforceable and concrete benchmarks to locate callers, the phone company plan is based on process-oriented steps like ‘tests,’ ‘demonstrations,’ and ‘studies,’ coupled with nice-sounding goals for the deployment of specific, minimal-cost handset technologies that have failed in the past to provide accurate indoor locations.”

Ford launched Sync 3 in-vehicle entertainment and communications system Thursday, promising faster performance, more “conversational” voice recognition, an intuitive touch screen similar to that of a smartphone and a simplified graphical interface. The company said it drew from 22,000 customer comments and suggestions in creating the third-generation platform, along with information from focus groups, surveys and competitive analysis. The system is optimized for hands-free operation, but the new touch screen delivers an experience similar to using a smartphone or tablet with gestures including pinch-to-zoom and swipe, it said. The display offers a bright background and large buttons with “high-contrast fonts” for daytime use, and at night it switches automatically to a dark background to help reduce eye fatigue and minimize reflections, Ford said. To reduce on-screen complexity, the home screen offers a choice of zones, navigation, audio and phone, and the system prioritizes the control options customers use most, the company said. Phone contacts are searchable via a finger swipe, and users can look up points of interest or addresses with a search box. The new voice recognition system cuts down on the number of steps required to carry out a command, Ford said. A user can name a song, artist, album or genre to bring up a song from a connected smartphone, no longer having to identify a category, the company said, and to switch to SiriusXM or terrestrial radio, users say the name of the station or station number. New features in AppLink enable users to control compatible apps using voice commands or buttons on screen, and AppLink automatically discovers streaming music service apps such as iHeartRadio Auto, NPR One, Pandora, Spotify, SiriusXM and Stitcher, Ford said. In the case of a "significant' accident, a Bluetooth-connected phone is used to dial 911, alerting first-responders to the vehicle’s location. With Sync 3, additional information is relayed, including if airbags were deployed, where damage occurred to the vehicle and the number of safety belts detected in use to help emergency call takers dispatch the appropriate resources to the scene, Ford said.

U.S. Cellular said it signed an agreement with Vertical Bridge Holdings to sell the company 595 towers for about $159 million in markets divested by the carrier. The deal is expected to close in the Q1, U.S. Cellular said Thursday. The carrier plans to use the money for “long-term investments that position U.S. Cellular for future growth opportunities,” said CEO Kenneth Meyers. Vertical Bridge CEO Alexander Gellman said: "Many of these sites are in locations that would be very difficult to replace."

A New York City project to offer free Wi-Fi hotspots at converted payphone sites shows the dangers of “virtual redlining,” Public Knowledge Senior Vice President Harold Feld told FCC officials, said a filing in docket 14-28. “The decision by commercial providers to limit prioritized service to wealthier communities and to avoid communities of color because of racial stereotypes, is a very real concern,” Feld said. The Wi-Fi hotspots are supported by advertisers, and “advertisers prefer wealthier eyes,” he said. “As a result, all of the 2,500-plus locations in Manhattan are high speed, giving the borough with 20 percent of the city’s population fully 65 percent of all the fast kiosks. Meanwhile, the Bronx will get speedy Wi-Fi at 361 kiosks -- just 6 percent of the fast Wi-Fi stations in the city.” Feld said the New York example points to the dangers of paid prioritization. “If carriers decide to offer commercial businesses the opportunity to reduce cost by limiting prioritization to specific markets on the basis of zip code, census block, or other geographic demarcation, we can anticipate that -- as with the NY City public wifi experience -- businesses will avail themselves of this opportunity,” he said. The New York City Franchise and Concession Review Committee recently held a hearing on the CityBridge consortium’s plan to install a Wi-Fi hot spot system in place at up to 10,000 obsolete payphone booth sites across the city (see 1412040056).

NTIA released an update Thursday to its Manual of Regulations and Procedures for Federal Radio Frequency Management, which took effect immediately, said a notice in Thursday's Federal Register. “The NTIA Manual is the compilation of policies and procedures that govern the use of the radio frequency spectrum by the U.S. Government,” the agency said. “Federal government agencies are required to follow these policies and procedures in their use of spectrum.”

The FCC announced a pleading cycle on a spectrum swap between AT&T and U.S. Cellular. Under the deal, AT&T would receive 10 to 20 MHz of broadband PCS spectrum in 104 counties in 32 cellular market areas, the FCC said. U.S. Cellular would get 10 to 15 MHz of broadband PCS spectrum in 18 counties in seven CMAs. “As a result of the proposed inter-market exchanges, AT&T would hold 76 to 185 MHz of spectrum in total, and U.S. Cellular would hold 34 to 91 MHz of spectrum in total, post-transaction, in the counties implicated by the proposed transaction,” the FCC said. Petitions to deny are due Jan. 5, oppositions Jan. 15 and replies Jan. 23.