FCC commissioners approved 4-0, largely as circulated by Chairman Ajit Pai, revised rules for public land mobile radio use of the 800 MHz band. The item was taken off the agenda for Tuesday’s commissioners’ meeting. Late discussions on the eighth floor concerned questions raised last week by APCO, the Enterprise Wireless Alliance and others about including in the rules a contour matrix developed by the Land Mobile Communications Council in 2015 (see 1810190056). But the order wasn’t changed substantially to address those questions, officials said Monday. Among the few tweaks, questions were added about low power in the UNII-5 and -7 bands and questions were also added on portable devices.

The Enterprise Wireless Alliance and others concerned about the 800 MHz band sought changes to the draft order on public land mobile radio use of the band, set for a vote at Tuesday’s FCC commissioners' meeting (see 1810020050). EWA, APCO, Forest Industries Telecommunications and the Utilities Technology's letter was posted Friday in docket 16-261. They asked the FCC to change course and agree to the Land Mobile Communications Council recommendation the agency use F(50,50) curves “to assess both coverage and interference contours for 800 MHz interstitial channel assignments.” They asked the FCC to remove a contour matrix, developed by the LMCC in 2015, from the rules and place it in an appendix. If the matrix becomes part of the rules, it would have to be modified later through an additional rulemaking, they said. “The matrix is already more than three years old and does not reflect any equipment updates in the interim. It may be outdated even before adoption, an analysis that will require discussion with the vendors whose equipment operates on this spectrum.”

The FCC earth stations in motion rules harmonization and Further NPRM about additional frequencies for communication with geostationary satellites approved last month (see 1809260029) could help juice up satellite broadband applications and the vehicular ESIM market, experts said at an FCBA event Thursday. Inmarsat Regulatory Director Giselle Creeser said the land ESIM market has been quieter than aeronautical and maritime applications, but services including autonomous trains and long-haul trucks are likely coming up.

The FCC earth stations in motion rules harmonization and Further NPRM about additional frequencies for communication with geostationary satellites approved last month (see 1809260029) could help juice up satellite broadband applications and the vehicular ESIM market, experts said at an FCBA event Thursday. Inmarsat Regulatory Director Giselle Creeser said the land ESIM market has been quieter than aeronautical and maritime applications, but services including autonomous trains and long-haul trucks are likely coming up.

Iota told Commissioner Mike O’Rielly the FCC should approve as circulated the draft report and order on public land mobile radio use of the 800 MHz band, set for a vote at Tuesday’s meeting (see 1810020050). A representative discussed the company’s plan for building a narrowband IoT network using 800 MHz specialized mobile radio expansion band (EB) and guard band (GB) channels. “Iota is eager to complete the construction of its IoT network but is restricted in doing so unless and until the FCC releases the channels in the EB and GB,” filed TeleMedia Policy's Justin Lilley, posted Wednesday in docket 16-261.

State courts may determine the reach of the Supreme Court’s 5-4 summer decision about mobile privacy in Carpenter v. U.S. It said government collection of at least seven days of cellsite location information (CSLI) is a Fourth Amendment-protected search, meaning police must obtain warrants (see 1806220052). Considered a win for privacy supporters, the decision didn’t address some emerging surveillance (see 1807050025).

State courts may determine the reach of the Supreme Court’s 5-4 summer decision about mobile privacy in Carpenter v. U.S. It said government collection of at least seven days of cellsite location information (CSLI) is a Fourth Amendment-protected search, meaning police must obtain warrants (see 1806220052). Considered a win for privacy supporters, the decision didn’t address some emerging surveillance (see 1807050025).

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) published its fall 2018 regulatory agenda for CBP. The agenda includes a new mention of a proposed rulemaking involving Privacy Act exemptions for some information collected through the Customs-Trade Partnership Against Terrorism (CTPAT). "In this proposed rulemaking, the Department proposes to exempt portions of the system of records from one or more provisions of the Privacy Act because of criminal, civil, and administrative enforcement requirements," CBP said. The agency is aiming to issue the proposal in February, it said.

The government of Canada recently issued the following trade-related notices as of Oct. 17 (some may also be given separate headlines):

Amazon landed separate patents Tuesday for enhancing the performance of package-delivering drones, one for recharging them while airborne, the other for an airbag to protect packages dropped from them at a “predetermined height,” Patent and Trademark Office records show. Replacing a drone’s battery is one way to extend its service time in delivering packages, says the airborne-recharging patent (10,099,561) naming five inventors and based on a September 2015 application. A big drawback is the drone’s range is limited “to the extent that it must land so that the power supply can be replaced,” it says. The patent describes a "power” drone that can “generate current from electromagnetic fields emanating from one or more conductors of overhead power lines.” The other patent (10,099,786), based on a Jan. 10 application and naming two inventors, envisions an “airlift package protection” (APP) airbag fashioned after a “stunt airbag” that cushions a skydiver’s impact with the ground. The APP airbag would be formed of polyethylene “to create a volume having an inner non-pressurized cavity to contain a package,” it says. Like the stunt airbag, the APP airbag “may exhaust some air upon impact with the ground, thereby reducing the magnitude of deceleration shock to a package contained inside,” it says. Amazon didn’t comment Tuesday.