Potential WCS Rules Change Elicits Worries From Interested Parties

Potential rule changes in the wireless communications service band meant to open up new spectrum for broadband services still have several flaws, say Sirius XM and the WCS Coalition, reacting to a rulemaking notice issued Friday. Further disagreement over the rules was expected by the FCC Office of Engineering, International Bureau, and Wireless Bureau, which acknowledge in the public notice “the draft rules do not adopt any party’s proposal in full” but say the rules “take a fair and balanced approach” to facilitating broadband use in the largely unused spectrum.

"WCS Coalition is pleased that FCC’s staff is proposing technical rules to govern the WCS/ [satellite radio] relationship that, while not perfect, reasonably permit WCS mobile broadband operations,” said Paul Sinderbrand, a Wilkinson Barker lawyer who represents the WCS Coalition. In particular, the coalition says the rule changes do too much to protect the aeronautical mobile telemetry facilities. The proposed rules would require WCS licensees to reach a “mutually satisfactory coordination agreement” with AMT facilities within 45 kilometers of the WCS base station. “Unfortunately, the staff’s proposal with respect to coordination zones surrounding AMT facilities goes too far, and will delay, if not preclude, the efforts by some WCS licensees to introduce service on their spectrum,” Sinderbrand said. “The WCS Coalition will be working to provide further information to the Commission on this topic, and is hopeful that the final rules will not be so dramatically skewed in favor of AMT.”

The Aerospace and Flight Test Radio Coordinating Council, which has raised concerns that WCS operations could pose a safety risk due to interference with aircraft flight tests, declined to comment. The “AFTRCC is concerned with the general lack of technical solutions to the prospect of WCS interference to flight test telemetry,” an industry executive told us.

Sirius XM, which advocated for more input before a rule change, said it’s “pleased the FCC has taken this step of inviting public comment on its proposed changes to the WCS rules” and that it will file further comments on the rules’ impact on its subscribers. The company declined to comment further, but a Monday ex parte filing highlighted some of the company’s concerns. The company said it worried that the rules were likely to “encourage licensees to aggregate WCS spectrum to maximize network throughput.” Office of Engineering Chief Julius Knapp told the company there was no such incentive and the FCC’s equipment authorization process would ensure that WCS devices comply with duty cycle limits, the filing said. Asked about the plans to mitigate interference, Knapp said he didn’t want to begin interference mitigation processes that might slow down WCS services deployment and that “notification” rather than “coordination” are typical for radio services, according to the filing. Sirius XM also circulated a wireless mobile broadband device made to perform video chat in a car. The commission was previously skeptical that such devices, which Sirius XM worries could cause interference, would make it to the market, Sirius XM said. The FCC staff said it hoped the Transportation Department would ban the use of such devices while cars are in motion, the filing said.