Ericsson Asks FCC for High-Band Certainty Beyond 24 and 28 GHz

Ericsson encouraged the FCC to provide certainty for high-frequency bands other than 28 and 24 GHz, the two bands now set for auction. “In support of a rapid launch of 5G services, Ericsson has invested heavily in product development efforts” in high-frequency bands, the company said in docket 14-177. “While the recent announcement of the 24 & 28 GHz auction has created momentum in 28 GHz deployments, it has created uncertainty elsewhere: 24 GHz investments are now prioritized over investments in the 37-40 GHz bands, although 24 GHz has not yet been developed for 5G.” No auction has been announced for the 37 and 39 GHz bands, Ericsson said. “Meanwhile, products developed for these frequency bands must adapt to the existing band rules that are not very suitable for some 5G use cases or deployment scenarios. Ericsson and other industry members must develop an interim ecosystem instead of the envisioned bandplan with 200 MHz channels.”