VoIP and text messaging should be classified as "interstate, information services, freeing them from unnecessary federal and state requirements," FCC Commissioner Mike O'Rielly told the Cloud Communications Alliance Tuesday night, according to remarks posted Wednesday. "Both services are extremely popular with consumers and businesses, and there is abundant competition both from legacy providers and new over-the-top players to meet the market’s needs. Nonetheless, both services continue to be the target of what I’ve called regulation by analogy." FCC failure to classify VoIP as an information service while subjecting it to some telecom regulation "only served to encourage mission creep by prior Commissions and regulatory ambitious states," some of which are trying to regulate VoIP, he said. A Minnesota case "is being litigated in the courts, and I appreciate that the Chairman and Office of General Counsel were willing to work with me on an amicus filing explaining the legal and practical problems with Minnesota’s approach," he said, lamenting that the agency "must divert staff resources to stamp out efforts that are contrary to the law and common sense." Charter Communications is squaring off with the Minnesota regulator (see 1806120026). O'Rielly said more deregulatory efforts are needed, including in a biennial review of telecom rules to be launched later this year. He said there are areas where the FCC needs to be proactive, including freeing up spectrum for commercial use in high-band and mid-band frequencies. "My focus has not only been on concluding the so-called Citizens Band Radio Service at 3.5 GHz, but also reallocating the C-Band spectrum for additional wireless uses," he said. "This will provide large slices of spectrum for licensed services at 3.7 to 4.2 GHz, while permitting us to allow unlicensed services at 6 GHz. After some initial resistance internally and externally, it is great to see everyone come around to this line of thinking."

An Apple-led proposal by tech companies for addressing interference in the C-band (see 1806130048) would create unacceptable levels of interference for its members, the Fixed Wireless Communications Coalition said Monday in docket 17-183. More than 95,000 licensed fixed service microwave links remain in the 6 GHz band, the FWCC said. “The gravity of the interference issues follows from the safety-critical nature of some FS applications,” the coalition said. “Even a brief interruption can take down a first responders’ backhaul network for several minutes.” Proponents of the tech-industry framework respond “to all such interference predictions with a wave of the hand, saying mitigation will solve the problem,” FWCC said. “Saying it is not enough.” A lawyer for the tech coalition didn't comment.

The Wireless ISP Association generally supports the framework for opening the 6 GHz band while protecting incumbents, as proposed by tech companies last week (see 1806130048), it told the FCC in docket 17-183. “Overall,” the framework is “an excellent starting point for a notice of proposed rulemaking,” WISPA said. “The framework recognizes that indoor devices and outdoor devices should be treated differently given their potential impact on existing operations,” WISPA said. “Ex ante interference protection measures and a periodic database check are essential parts of a comprehensive regulatory framework. Applying these functional requirements will pave the way for shared use of a new unlicensed band that could bring significant benefits.”

The FCC July 12 agenda will tackle C-band spectrum for 5G, an NPRM on children’s TV rules as expected (see 1806180055), and false emergency alerts, but not the national TV ownership cap, said industry attorneys and Chairman Ajit Pai's blog. Though the FCC was seen last week as aiming to take on the cap in July (see 1806140055), the agency is now seen as shooting for the August commissioners’ meeting. “It’s imperative that we remain at the front of the pack,” for 5G, Pai said. The July meeting also will include proceedings on nationwide number portability, 800 MHz spectrum and handling of formal complaints, he wrote.

Schools and public interest groups said the FCC should extend by 60 days comment deadlines on a May NPRM on the future of the 2.5 GHz band (see 1805100053). The Catholic Technology Network and the National Educational Broadband Service Association earlier sought 45-day extension (see 1806180041). “Joint Stakeholders require additional time to respond fully, given the broad scope of the NPRM, the complexity of the issues it raises, and the challenges of a summer comment cycle for educators,” said a filing in docket 18-120. “provide enough time to build a thorough record for its ultimate decision by ensuring that all interested parties have sufficient opportunity to develop and submit responsive comments.” The Schools, Health & Libraries Broadband Coalition, North American Catholic Educational Programing Foundation, Voqal, Educators and Broadband Providers for American Rural Communities, School Board of Broward County in Florida, Florida Gateway College, Florida Atlantic University, Miami-Dade County Public Schools, Public Knowledge and Open Technology Institute at New America signed. Comments are due July 9, replies Aug. 6.

High-tech companies proposed a mitigation strategy to address concerns about interference in the 6 GHz band to protect incumbents while opened for unlicensed use. “We propose that the Commission adopt a robust framework for preventing harmful interference to FS [fixed service] incumbents,” the companies said in docket 17-183. The framework should include “comprehensive ex ante interference protection through an automated frequency coordination process” and a “remediation tool to assure incumbents that, in the highly unlikely event that they experience harmful interference from a 6 GHz … device despite automated frequency coordination, the interference can be stopped and prevented from recurring.” The framework will protect fixed satellite service operators through antenna pointing rules, the companies said. Apple, Broadcom, Cisco, Facebook, Google, Hewlett Packard Enterprise, Intel, Microsoft, Qualcomm and Ruckus Networks signed. “Our companies’ understanding of the dynamics present in the 6 GHz band has benefited greatly from this record, and from our exchanges directly with incumbents,” they said. “We appreciate their good faith efforts to work collectively to find a way to improve broadband access for more Americans while avoiding harmful interference.” Meanwhile, Verizon reported meeting Wireless Bureau and Office of Engineering and Technology staff where it “reiterated its conditional support for unlicensed use of the 5.925-6.425 GHz band, as long as the Commission adopts rules that protect the tens of thousands of existing microwave links and future microwave deployments in the band.”

Unlicensed use in the 6 GHz band will clearly cause "pervasive and consistent" -- not rare -- interference to the 95,000 licensed fixed service links in the band, the Fixed Wireless Communications Coalition said in a filing to be posted in docket 17-183. It responded to arguments by tech companies seeking unlicensed use of the band that there won't be harmful interference (see 1805140049). FWCC said the level of interference the tech companies concede to "would decimate FS reliability," but the actual interference "would be orders of magnitude worse." It said most of the mitigation measures the tech companies propose wouldn't protect 6 GHz FS. The group said the "extraordinarily high reliability" required of FS operations means even a brief interference even to a sole receiver could disable numerous links for several minutes while it resynchronizes. Outside counsel for the tech companies didn't comment.

Comments on an NPRM on proposed service rules for the 2.5 GHz band will be due July 9, with replies Aug. 6, says Thursday's Federal Register. The FCC in May adopted the NPRM, which contemplates such actions as an incentive auction (see 1805100053).

Don't open up the 6 GHz band to 5G until there's evidence unlicensed U-NII usage can be done in a way that won't cause destructive interference, Enterprise Wireless Alliance said in an FCC docket 17-183 posting Monday. It said the "silo-focused regulatory approach" of dedicated allocations may not be practical but sharing has to be proven before it's allowed in heavily used bands. It said the FCC should refrain from action until it assess the waiver given to Higher Ground for up to 50,000 unlicensed devices in the band.

Elefante Group, developing a stratospheric-based communications and IoT-enabling system, petitioned the FCC to amend part 2 and 101 rules to allow deployment of stratospheric-based communications services (SBCS). Friday's petition seeks "a new model of spectrum access" where SBCS systems "will exhibit compatibility by design," and it wants co-primary access to the 21.5-23.6 GHz band for uplinks, 25.25-27.5 GHz band for downlinks and the 71-76 and 81-86 GHz bands for feeder links. It said its proposed stratospheric platform stations will operate at nominally fixed locations at 65,000-feet altitudes and allow SBCS services of 1 Tbps in both directions between the stations and user terminals. The company said each airship would have a coverage area of 6,000 square miles. Elefante said SBCS applications include 5G deployment and commercial communications services such as 4G and 5G backhaul and residential broadband. The petition asks for a co-primary allocation in the 26 GHz band, SBCS technical and operational rules for the 22-23 GHz and 26 GHz bands, rules allowing SBCS feeder links the 70/80 GHz bands and licensing rules for non-exclusive assignments to SBCS operators based on regional economic area. It asks the agency to start a rulemaking within a year and complete it within two years.