Order Rejecting China Mobile Application Tops FCC May Meeting Agenda

The FCC is poised to send a message on China at the commissioners’ May 9 meeting, rejecting China Mobile’s application to provide telecommunications services in the U.S. A draft order circulated by Chairman Ajit Pai says granting China Mobile a Section 214 authorization wouldn’t be in the public interest due to national security and law enforcement risks that can’t be addressed through a mitigation agreement, a senior FCC official said Wednesday. Unlike some meetings under Pai, there isn't a broader meeting-wide theme. The FCC also will consider a previously promised FM translator interference item, revised video relay service (VRS) rules, a proposal for the 1675-1680 MHz band sought by Ligado and satellite and a toll-free number auction items.

The agency is still considering broader actions to counter the threat from companies deemed a security threat to U.S. communications networks or the communications supply chain (see 1812210032). Most of that focus has been on China’s Huawei and ZTE.

China Mobile, owned by China’s government, indicated if the authorization is approved it will sign agreements with other carriers and have its own facilities in the U.S., the senior official said. The draft order says China Mobile is “vulnerable to exploitation, influence, and control by the Chinese government,” the FCC said.

“Safeguarding our communications networks is critical to our national security,” Pai said in a Wednesday statement. “After reviewing the evidence in this proceeding, including the input provided by other federal agencies, it is clear that China Mobile’s application to provide telecommunications services in our country raises substantial and serious national security and law enforcement risks.”

In September 2011, China Mobile sought FCC approval to provide international facilities-based and resale telecom services between the U.S. and foreign destinations, the FCC said. Last July, executive branch agencies opposed the application. China Mobile and the Chinese Embassy didn’t comment. This is the first time the executive branch recommended the FCC deny an application due to national security concerns, Pai blogged. China Mobile hasn't sought to enter the U.S. market as a wireless carrier, FCC officials said.

In May 2016, China Mobile urged the FCC to make a decision on its application, noting then it had the longest pending application for Section 214 authority. “U.S. World Trade Organization commitments in basic telecommunications obligate the United States to permit market entry for the provision of voice, packet- and circuit-switched data, and private leased circuits for modes of supply including cross-border supply and commercial presence,” said the filing in docket 16-155.

FM Translators

Pai confirmed in the blog that the May agenda will include the FM translator interference item announced at NAB 2019 (see 1904100069). He didn’t announce any additional details about the proposed 54 dBu interference contour, but said the draft order “would establish simpler interference remediation procedures, clarify listener complaint requirements, and make it easier for translators causing interference to change channels.” The FCC has granted 1,707 construction permits for new FM translators, 500 of which are on-air, “but with this success has come an uptick in interference complaints from FM stations,” Pai said.

The proposed 54 dBu contour, which would prevent full power FM stations from lodging interference complaints against translators outside the boundary, was seen as the most controversial aspect of the NPRM. Media Bureau Audio Division Chief Al Shuldiner made comments last week that seemed to suggest the draft order could include a boundary farther out than the original NPRM proposal (see 1904090063).

Wednesday’s blog didn’t include any items described as being part of the FCC’s monthly media modernization effort. May will be almost the first monthly commissioners’ meeting without such an item since the policy was first voted in September 2017. The government shutdown-abbreviated January 2018 meeting, which had no agenda items, also didn’t include a media modernization item. The FCC didn’t comment on the lack of such an item.

The revised VRS rules “will make it easier for people who rely on American Sign Language to communicate directly with signing customer support representatives,” Pai said. “To crack down on waste, fraud, and abuse in the VRS program, the order would strengthen our mechanisms for call validation -- essentially, making sure it’s a legitimate VRS call (and hence one properly supported by federal funds),” Pai said: “As part of an accompanying Further Notice, among other ideas, we’ll propose expanding the available pool of qualified sign-language interpreters by converting the current pilot program on at-home interpreting into a permanent one.”

More Spectrum

Pai also circulated a proposal that looks at auctioning 5 MHz of spectrum at 1675-1680 MHz for shared use. The administration called for the auction in its FY 2020 budget (see 1802120037). Licensees will have to share with weather satellites. “I agree with opening this spectrum for commercial use,” Pai said. “As the first step down that path, I’m circulating a proposal to reallocate spectrum in the 1675-1680 MHz band for shared use between incumbent federal operations and new, non-federal fixed or mobile operations.”

Ligado Networks said in a news release it petitioned the FCC to reallocate the band. “Making this spectrum available for commercial use would create a huge benefit for the American wireless industry, because if combined with other available frequencies, it could unleash 40 MHz of vital lower mid-band spectrum to serve mission-critical industrial Internet of Things and other emerging 5G applications,” said Ligado Chairman Ivan Seidenberg.

"All spectrum, including the 1675-1680 MHz band, provides real opportunities for carriers to deploy next-generation technologies and meet consumers’ ever-increasing demands for advanced mobile services." emailed Steve Berry, president of the Competitive Carriers Association.

Also on the agenda is Theia Holdings' application for 112 non-geostationary orbit satellites, Pai said. It's one of the NGSO constellations proposed in 2016 (see 1611160010). Since June 2017, the agency has approved constellation plans for OneWeb, Space Norway, Telesat Canada, SpaceX, Audacy, O3b and Karousel (see 1811090002).

And the commissioners will vote on a public notice to start the pre-bidding process for some toll-free 833 numbers for public health and safety purposes. Pai said more than 17,000 numbers will be available in this first-of-its-kind auction. The commissioners OK'd the phone number auction process last year (see 1809260047).