CBRS

General Electric, active in the past on the 3.5 GHz citizens broadband radio services band, met FCC Chairman Ajit Pai to urge the agency to stick with a plan to license priority access licenses on a census-tract basis. The FCC is examining whether it should instead license the PALs in larger sizes, as proposed by wireless carriers (see 1710240050). “Census-tract licensing is critically important to GE and its industrial and critical-infrastructure customers, since the CBRS band is an ideal spectrum platform for the ‘Industrial Internet of Things’ (IIoT) and can serve as a unique catalyst for accelerated growth throughout the U.S. industrial and manufacturing sector,” GE filed Wednesday in docket 17-258. “Robust IIoT applications require significant spectrum, secure localized networks, and specialized technology, and today industrial and critical-infrastructure entities are typically unable to obtain the necessary wireless functionality from commercial mobile operators on a cost-effective basis.” Also on 3.5 GHz, GeoLinks CEO Skyler Ditchfield and others from the wireless ISP explained the importance of the band to his company. Ditchfield met over two days with officials, including all FCC members other than Jessica Rosenworcel. “The Company explained the challenge of operating on unlicensed bands such as 5 GHz in urban environments, where overcrowding can slow and disrupt service,” said a Wednesday filing. “It could provide better and more reliable service, including Gigabit service to the home, if the Company had access to sufficient licensed or lightly licensed spectrum.”

The FCC should stick with rules as they are for the 3.5 GHz citizens broadband radio service band, Dynamic Spectrum Alliance President Kalpak Gude told an aide to Chairman Ajit Pai. DSA said it opposes both longer license terms and bigger geographic licenses for priority access licenses (PALs) that are the licensed component of the band. In October, commissioners agreed to seek comment on revising the rules (see 1710240050). “The current three-year terms are better connected to return on investment than the ten-year terms as mentioned in the NPRM, and that renewability is counterproductive to the goals the Commission has articulated for the band,” DSA said in docket 17-258. “Both changes would create a need for more regulatory oversight in terms of build-out requirements and enforcement. Shorter terms with no right of renewal will allow for a much more market driven structure.”

Ruckus hopes the FCC will move soon to finalize approvals for devices that can use the 3.5 GHz citizens broadband radio service band, as well as approvals of the first spectrum access system (SAS) administrators and environmental sensing capability (EMC) operators, Dave Wright, director-regulatory affairs and network standards, told us. “There is a tremendous amount of existing investment, momentum and anticipation in the band,” Wright said in an email. “Any further delays risks stalling the ecosystem.” There have been reports of movement on rules for the band (see 1801020046). “Ruckus is encouraged by both the quantity and quality of the comments that have been submitted to this NPRM, especially considering that the filing deadline was between Christmas and New Year’s,” Wright said. New commenters “representing a variety of industries such as transport, energy, and rural providers” weighed in, he said. Comments on priority access licenses “echo the previous positions that had been taken,” but others “offered fresh thoughts on secondary market mechanisms (leasing and partitioning) and performance requirements,” he said. “We expect these ideas will receive additional attention in the reply phase.”

NAB raised concerns about interference if the FCC makes technical changes to rules for the 3.5 GHz citizens broadband radio service (CBRS) band. Other commenters said the FCC should minimize changes to the rules approved three years ago. The FCC approved the initial 3.5 GHz NPRM in 2012 (see 1212130044), setting up an experimental three-tiered access and sharing model made up of federal and nonfederal incumbents, priority access licenses (PALs) and general authorized access users. In October, commissioners agreed to seek comment on revising the rules (see 1710240050).

Frontier, Windstream and Consolidated Communications jointly told the FCC they're interested in using the 3.5 GHz citizens broadband radio service (CBRS) band and agree with others who argue against increasing the size of the priority access licenses (PALs) (see 1712260032). The three noted this is the first time they have weighed in on the CBRS proceeding. “Our companies believe that the 3.5 GHz Band could provide another key tool in the toolbox to reach the hardest to serve rural Americans if carriers are able to access the spectrum for rural fixed wireless deployments,” they said in a filing in docket 17-258. “In particular, by preserving smaller census tract license sizes in rural areas, the FCC can offer the opportunity for rural fixed wireless in the band and promote rural broadband deployment.” Wireless carriers represented by the Blooston, Mordkofsky law firm also supported smaller license sizes for the PALs. “The Commission can best promote investment and maximize opportunities for both large and small service providers by adopting county-based licensing for five (5) of the PALs and retaining census block licensing for two (2) PALs, and retaining a significant amount of dedicated [general access] spectrum to create and enhance opportunities for all operators,” the carriers said. The Wireless ISP Association said in a news release it will oppose changes to the rules in a filing it's making at the FCC. “There is nothing on the Commission’s agenda that is more important than connecting the 23 million rural Americans who don’t have access to broadband today,” said Chuck Hogg, WISPA chairman. “Fixed-wireless technology is the most cost-effective way to connect the unconnected, and the current CBRS rules are a solid framework to attract private capital to rapidly connect the unconnected. If the Commission is serious about bridging the digital divide, it will reject this transparent attempt by the nation’s largest mobile carriers to use the regulatory process for their exclusive benefit, and to the detriment of competition and rural broadband.”

Additional wireless ISPs warned against selling priority access licenses (PALs) in the 3.5 GHz citizens broadband radio service (CBRS) band in geographic sizes larger than census tracts (see 1712220022). Kentucky WiMax said it already serves about 40 percent of its customers using WiMax equipment in the 3.65-3.7 GHz band, but is changing to LTE. “The rule changes proposed by the NPRM which increase the size of PALs and lengthen the term of licenses would most certainly put our company at a disadvantage to that of larger nationwide carriers,” the Kentucky WISP said. On-Ramp Indiana said larger PALs would “make the band nothing more than another Licensed band for the cellular industry.” InvisiMax, which serves parts of North Dakota and Minnesota, said it has invested more than $9 million in its network and investment sometimes seems “never ending.” InvisiMax said it's excited about the CBRS spectrum, but only big corporations and carriers will pursue larger PALs.

Two energy associations jointly urged the FCC to back away from proposals to sell priority access licenses (PALs) in the 3.5 GHz citizens broadband radio service (CBRS) band in geographic sizes much larger than census tracts. Various wireless ISPs also raised objections. The FCC adopted an NPRM in October on several potential changes, including selling the PALs using partial economic area (PEA) licenses (see 1710240050). The Telecommunications Subcommittee of the American Petroleum Institute and the Regulatory and Technology Committee of the Energy Telecommunications and Electrical Association (ENTELEC) said larger license sizes would be detrimental to critical infrastructure companies.

The FCC International and Wireless bureaus and Office of Engineering and Technology published procedures for registering fixed satellite service earth stations entitled to protection from the 3.5 GHz citizens broadband radio service. The Thursday public notice -- stemming from the 2016 report and order on the shared band (see 1605020059) -- detailed eligibility requirements for earth stations entitled to protection and gave an overview of the registration process.

The FCC identified almost 1 million locations eligible for a Connect America Fund auction of up to $2 billion in aggregate broadband-oriented subsidies over 10 years. The residential and small-business locations are in census blocks traditionally served by major telcos. Participants can bid on those locations in the reverse (low bids favored) CAF Phase II auction of support for fixed broadband and voice services with data speeds of at least 10/1 Mbps. The commission also listed census block groups (and their reserve prices) on which bids can be placed, and made available a map showing the eligible blocks within those groups, said a news release and public notice Tuesday. Industry parties welcomed the developments, some noting continuing issues.

Wireless ISP Association officials met with FCC Chairman Ajit Pai and staff on 3.5 GHz citizens broadband radio service spectrum. WISPA hopes the FCC will stick with small, census tract-sized priority access licenses (PALs) in the band. If the FCC adopts larger license sizes, and lengthy license terms, as proposed in an October NPRM (see 1710240050), only “a few large mobile wireless carriers” would bid for PALs, WISPA said. “Modifying the PAL rules in the manner proposed … would only benefit the mobile-carrier use case to the detriment of all other use cases.” Federated Wireless also reported on a series of meetings at the FCC on the CBRS band and the importance of quick FCC action on certifying spectrum access system administrators and environmental sensing capability operators in the band and completing the NPRM. CEO Iyad Tarazi and others from the company met with Commissioners Mike O’Rielly and Jessica Rosenworcel and aides to the other commissioners. “Federated alone has conducted 30+ technical trials, and has a number of important field trials underway with Charter, Verizon, American Tower, and ARRIS/Ruckus Wireless,” said a filing in docket 17-258. “Federated supports the goal of concluding the NPRM proceeding by the end of Q1 2018. Federated emphasized the importance of resolving remaining CBRS issues in a manner that preserves access to CBRS spectrum for as many users -- and use cases -- as possible.”