FCC chairman green-lights AT&T’s use of WCS spectrum for LTE with proposed order

Image

AT&T is close to securing a major victory in its battle against the spectrum crunch. While it’s not quite a done deal, FCC chairman Genachowski has submitted a proposed order to FCC commissioners that would authorize AT&T’s deployment of its LTE service within a 20MHz portion of the 2.3GHz (WCS) band. The deal is unique in that the spectrum is currently reserved for satellite radio, and the reallocation would mark the first of its kind within the WCS band. As you may recall, AT&T previously conceded to a 5MHz dead zone on both ends of Sirius XM’s operating frequency in order to mitigate interference concerns, and it seems the move was sufficient to gain the chairman’s support.

Also looming on the FCC’s to-do list is the decision of whether to approve AT&T’s purchase NextWave and its unused WCS spectrum. If it’s any indication, however, Chairman Genachowski seems bullish on the reallocation and has suggested that the agency may authorize another 30MHz of the WCS band for mobile broadband use. AT&T has previously said that it could feasibly deploy LTE over the 2.3GHz spectrum within the next three years. One group fighting the deal is the Competitive Carrier Association, which posits that AT&T’s purchase of such a significant chunk of spectrum on the secondary market is anti-competitive in nature. It’ll no doubt be interesting to see if the argument gains any traction with the FCC. In the meantime, you can view remarks from the agency’s spokesperson after the break.

Continue reading FCC chairman green-lights AT&T’s use of WCS spectrum for LTE with proposed order

Filed under: Cellphones, Wireless, Mobile

FCC chairman green-lights AT&T’s use of WCS spectrum for LTE with proposed order originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 27 Sep 2012 07:11:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink   |  sourceFCC, GigaOM  | Email this | Comments

Latest posts

Spider-Man: Brand New Day will start filming in August, and I’m desperate to have some of my biggest questions answered about the Marvel movie

Spider-Man: Brand New Day will reportedly start filming in AugustTom Holland's next outing as the famous webslinger will initially be shot in ScotlandThe Marvel...

Android 16’s answer to iOS Live Activities is coming soon – here are the apps it’ll support, including Google Maps

First-look images of Android's upcoming Live Updates function revealedSimilar feel to iOS Live Activities Live Updates is currently only functional in the latest Android...

ExpressVPN faces a class action in the US over alleged “illegal” auto-renewal fees

ExpressVPN has been hit by a class action lawsuit over alleged "illegal" auto-renewal feesA Californian customer accused ExpressVPN of automatically charging him a monthly...

AMD’s new GPUs could be a flop – and while that’s good news for Nvidia, I’m worried for gamers

AMD's RDNA 4 GPUs are not even in Steam's top ranked graphics cardsNvidia's Blackwell GPUs, on the other hand, are forging aheadNvidia's GPUs are...

Hunting for early Prime Day deals? Beware, scammers have set up thousands of fake Amazon sites – here’s what to look out for

NordVPN's researchers saw more than 100,000 malicious websites with an Amazon themeBesides phishing for credentials, crooks are tricking people into making fraudulent purchasesConsumers are...

Yes, there are AirPods Pro 2 deals in the 4th of July sales – but you shouldn’t buy them, here’s why

Last week, a sad-eyed young man in an Apple Genius t-shirt said the six words no Apple aficionado wants to hear. "Your AirPods Pro...

This guy tested 200 microSD cards, destroying 51 in the process – but I don’t understand why he didn’t test more 1TB memory cards

MicroSD card survey tested 200 models to uncover fakes, performance gaps, and endurance failuresFake flash was common in cheap high-capacity cards, discarding data past...

Rock on! Marshall’s great Bluetooth speakers and headphones have hit super-low prices in Amazon’s early Prime Day deals

Marshall makes some very fun Bluetooth speakers and headphones, and three favorites have dropped to very low prices in Amazon's early Prime Day deals.The...

Samsung Galaxy Unpacked 2025: Get ready for the Galaxy Z Fold 7 and Galaxy Z Flip 7

Samsung's third Unpacked showcase of the year is set for July 9, which will mark its summer showcase (at least for people in the...

This is probably the best Apple Mac Mini Windows Mini PC alternative on the market right now – $378 Chuwi AuBox Mini drives four...

Chuwi's compact Windows PC with powerful specs and low price enters European marketRyzen 7 processor and Radeon graphics bring creative performance to tiny desktopSupports...