Rosenworcel Hails Court's 5.9 GHz Decision

FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel welcomed the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit’s decision upholding the agency’s 2020 5.9 GHz order (see 2208120035). “In the more than two decades since the FCC allocated the 5.9 GHz band to support automobile safety, autonomous and connected vehicles have largely moved beyond dedicated, short-range communications technologies to newer, market-driven alternatives,” Rosenworcel said Friday: The decision "recognizes that by allowing this spectrum to evolve we can advance newer safety technologies and grow our wireless economy.” Michael Calabrese, director of the Wireless Future Program at New America, noted the court reached a similar decision on the 6 GHz band. “Unsurprisingly, the D.C. Circuit reinforced its similar decision last December that the FCC has wide discretion to authorize unlicensed sharing of underutilized spectrum or even, in this case, to reallocate a portion of a lightly-used band to provide more bandwidth for next generation Wi-Fi,” Calabrese emailed: “Since Chairwoman Rosenworcel was a driving force behind the FCC’s unanimous 5-0 votes to authorize unlicensed use of both the 5.9 and 6 GHz bands, consumer advocates expect she will now move quickly to complete both proceedings and maintain the U.S. position as the global leader in Wi-Fi technologies.”