John Branscome, Meta director-U.S. public policy, told FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel about the importance of very-low power operations to the future of the 6 GHz band. Branscome “noted the importance of adopting a VLP power level that supports effective use of the band and that supports U.S. advocacy internationally,” said a filing posted Wednesday in docket 18-295. Rosenworcel is expected to propose an order on revised rules for the 6 GHz band for one of the commissioners' meetings before the World Radiocommunication Conference in November (see 2308070060).

Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada approved Qualcomm as that nation’s first 6 GHz automated frequency coordination system operator, taking that step ahead of the U.S. The FCC last year provisionally approved 13 companies to be AFC operators, but all are still awaiting final approval (see 2211030066). Qualcomm applied to be an AFC operator in Canada in December and was approved Monday. Applications by Comsearch, Federated Wireless and Wi-Fi Alliance Services are under review by the Canadian regulator. Qualcomm was one of the companies provisionally approved by the FCC. The FCC didn't comment Wednesday.

Tech company representatives spoke with an aide to Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel and staff at the Office of Engineering and Technology on technical issues with allowing very-low power (VLP) portable operations in the 6 GHz band, as proposed in a 2020 Further NPRM (see 2004230059). “We discussed that the record contains two separate large-scale Monte Carlo analyses that demonstrate that the risk of 1 dBm/MHz VLP is insignificant and that the European Union and the United Kingdom have similarly concluded that this power level protects incumbent Fixed Service operations,” said a filing Wednesday in docket 18-295. Companies represented on the calls were Apple, Broadcom, Google and Meta.

The FCC should consider a central clearinghouse, similar to the one used in the 800 MHz transition, to address problems that arise as use of the 6 GHz band becomes more prominent, Enterprise Wireless Alliance representatives told an aide to FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel. EWA also “urged the FCC to adopt cost recovery mechanisms for incumbents that need to baseline their operations and take other steps to mitigate against interference from unlicensed devices,” said a filing Tuesday in docket 18-295. “We expressed our concern that the FCC not adopt further changes to the technical rules in this band without also addressing these issues,” EWA said.

Apple representatives urged FCC adoption of rules allowing very-low power (VLP) portable operations in the 6 GHz band, one of the proposals in a 2020 Further NPRM (see 2004230059), in a meeting with an aide to FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel. “The mobility that will come with VLP is critical to the future of the 6 GHz band and that countries around the world have already approved mobile VLP operations in the band,” said a filing posted Monday in docket 18-295: “These countries have established a power level of 1 dBm/MHz, determining that this power level protects incumbents.” Apple asked the FCC to approve operations “at a power level as close as possible to that approved by other international regulatory bodies.” Rosenworcel is expected to release an item in the next few months in response to the FNPRM (see 2308070060).

ASPEN, Colo. -- House and Senate priorities when they're back in session in September include reauthorizing the FCC's spectrum auction authority, agency oversight and filling FCC and FTC commissioner openings, legislative aides said Monday at Technology Policy Institute's Aspen Forum. Panels and speakers also discussed the inevitability of further media consolidation and social media's effect on political polarization. UScellular CEO Laurent Therivel urged revisiting the decision to allocate the 6 GHz band for unlicensed use. The prospects of AI regulation also were discussed (see 2308210029).

FCC action on the 6 GHz Further NPRM would help make communications more energy efficient, the Wi-Fi Alliance said in a letter to the four commissioners (see 2307310049). “Commission action is particularly critical because while policymakers in several countries are following the Commission’s lead, the upcoming 2023 World Radiocommunication Conference will also consider the 6 GHz spectrum designation,” said a filing Tuesday in docket 18-295. “In addition to the substantial spectrum harmonization benefits that a global approach to the 6 GHz band would produce, these pending international decisions offer a unique opportunity to leverage spectrum policy toward energy conservation and sustainability objectives,” the alliance said: “It is already well established that Wi-Fi technology excels in low-power, cognitive radio techniques including spectrum sensing, spectrum sharing, and adaptive transmission. These capabilities enable Wi-Fi to significantly outperform other wireless technologies in energy efficiency.”

Apple supports the more narrowly tailored View C on identifying additional frequency bands for international mobile telecommunications (IMT) over View A, supported by much of the wireless industry (see 2304240049), at the upcoming World Radiocommunication Conference, representatives told Ethan Lucarelli, chief of the FCC Office of International Affairs. “We noted how View C offers appropriate refinements to the frequency bands for study for a future IMT agenda item by accounting for increasing deployments of ultrawideband technologies in 7.7-9.3 GHz,” said a filing posted Tuesday in docket 17-183. Apple also urged a “no change” position on “the 6 GHz bands in Agenda Item 1.2, as well as provided a status update on recent filings concerning potential rules for very low power device operations in the 6 GHz band being considered as part of a pending” Further NPRM, the filing said.

A lawyer for tech companies met with FCC Office of Engineering and Technology Chief Ron Repasi on 6 GHz issues, said a filing posted Friday in docket 18-295. There have been reports the FCC will vote in coming months on a follow-up order to a 2020 Further NPRM (see 2308070060). “We discussed the numerous overlapping protections that will prevent very low power (VLP) devices from causing harmful interference to fixed-service receivers in the 6 GHz band,” said HWG’s Paul Caritj: “In particular, I explained how the Commission can be confident that transmit power control would reduce average VLP power by at least 3 dB. We also discussed the itinerancy of VLP devices, which provides yet another layer of protection against harmful interference.” Caritj represents Apple, Broadcom, Google and Meta Platforms. NCTA and CableLabs, meanwhile, met with OET staff on the band. They “emphasized the importance of unlicensed spectrum to American consumers, innovation, and the US economy” and asked the FCC to complete action on revised 6 GHz rules. "NCTA reiterated that CableLabs’ probabilistic analyses, on which the FCC relied in the 6 GHz Order, upheld by the DC Circuit, and which have been supplemented in the 6 GHz FNPRM record, consistently show that even when applying conservative assumptions, there is no meaningful risk of harmful interference to incumbent fixed link operations when [low-power indoor] power limits are increased as proposed."

FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel appears to be teeing up an order on revised rules for the 6 GHz band for one of the commissioners' open meetings before the World Radiocommunication Conference, which starts Nov. 20 in Dubai. The WRC includes an agenda item on whether to identify the upper 700 MHz of the band for international mobile telecommunications, which the U.S. opposes, and the order would lay down a strong U.S. marker in favor of unlicensed use of the band, Wi-Fi advocates told us.