FCC Acted 'Reasonably' on 5.9 GHz: US to DC Circuit

The FCC “reasonably exercised its authority over the Nation’s airwaves” in dividing the 5.9 GHz band, with 45 MHz set aside for Wi-Fi and 30 MHz for cellular vehicle-to-everything technology, the government told the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit. Last year's order met a “pressing need for improved Wi-Fi internet service and other unlicensed uses, while also preserving ample capacity for present and anticipated vehicular-communications needs,” said a brief filed Wednesday in docket 21-1130. ITS America and the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials asked the court to overturn the order (see 2106020076). Wi-Fi advocates believe the order will stand (see 2107020036). The needs of the public and the best use of the spectrum have changed “dramatically” since the FCC allocated the spectrum for auto safety in 1999, the U.S. said. “Vehicular communications technology using the band has barely been deployed, and many of the features for which this spectrum was expected to be used have shifted to different technologies and to other bands,” the government said: “Demand for this spectrum to support Wi-Fi networks and wireless broadband -- technology that barely existed when this spectrum was allocated more than two decades ago -- has exploded.”