Verizon may be poised to make big gains this fall due to dynamic spectrum sharing and carrier aggregation technologies it's deploying, LightShed’s Walter Piecyk told investors Thursday. “These technologies will enable Verizon to not only activate the 5G indicator on new 5G enabled iPhones, but also actually deliver industry leading 5G speeds,” the analyst said: “Phone reviewers are going to love it.” Piecyk said Verizon also faces spectrum concerns.

The U.S. is “losing its battle to keep European and Asian allies from including Huawei equipment in their 5G rollouts,” blogged Claude Barfield, American Enterprise Institute resident scholar, Thursday. The administration’s push on 5G continues “to be described as chaotic,” he said. In December, President Donald Trump “assigned coordinating responsibilities for 5G development to White House national security staffer Robert Blair,” Barfield said: “Confusion remains, as Blair has made it clear that his responsibility is confined largely to international 5G negotiations, and Larry Kudlow, who heads the National Economic Council, remains in charge of the administration’s domestic 5G strategy.”

Senate Armed Services Committee Chairman Jim Inhofe of Oklahoma and five other Senate Republicans urged the departments of Commerce, Defense, Energy and State Tuesday to “issue regulations as soon as possible confirming that U.S. participation in 5G standards-setting is not restricted by export control regulations” to ensure U.S. technology “continues to form the core of 5G foundational technology.” U.S. tech leaders “have been constrained from full participation in 5G standards-setting bodies” since Commerce's Bureau of Industry and Security’s addition of Chinese equipment maker Huawei to its entity list (see 1906190054), the senators wrote Energy Secretary Dan Brouillette, Defense Secretary Mark Esper, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and Commerce Secretary of Wilbur Ross. “We are deeply concerned about the risks to the U.S. global leadership position” in 5G “as a result of this reduced participation, and the economic and national security implications of any diminished U.S. role in 5G.” When U.S. export controls “restrict U.S. companies from participating in standards-setting bodies,” Huawei “is well positioned to fill any gaps,” the senators said. The other GOP senators signing the letter were: John Cornyn of Texas, Tom Cotton of Arkansas, Mike Crapo of Idaho, Marco Rubio of Florida and Todd Young of Indiana.

FCC staff showed areas likely to benefit from a 5G USF fund. Commissioners vote April 23 on an NPRM (see 2004020066). One of the proposed ways of awarding funds would be based on “existing data sources that identify rural areas,” Thursday's report said. The top five states in terms of land area that would qualify are: Nebraska (92%), North Dakota (91%), South Dakota (90%), Montana (89%) and Wyoming (86%). Top states based on eligible population: Vermont (47%), Maine (34%), Montana (33%), North Dakota (33%) and South Dakota (32%). The document is from the Rural Broadband Auctions Task Force and Office of Economics and Analytics. The FCC said as much as 67% of the land in 49 states and three U.S. territories would be eligible. Alaska has a separate mobile plan. The agency has different support for Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Competitive Carriers Association President Steve Berry criticized the report. “Unfortunately, the FCC is publishing eligibility maps that bear little relationship to where there is or is not actually coverage,” Berry emailed: “The analysis itself notes that the maps released today may bear little resemblance to the areas actually available for funding in an auction, which is extremely concerning. At a time when everyone is recognizing the importance of bridging the digital divide, the FCC seems intent on moving forward with spending $9 billion without bothering to measure the scope of the problem they are purporting to solve.”

FCC Chairman Ajit Pai seeks a vote at the April 23 commissioners' meeting on opening 6 GHz to Wi-Fi. Also as expected, Pai confirmed Wednesday he seeks a vote at the meeting on a 5G fund. In a departure from the NPRM, Pai proposes making all 1,200 megahertz available for low-power indoor use, without automated frequency control. The order suggests wide channels, since power levels will be much lower than is allowed in other Wi-Fi spectrum, officials said. The draft allows gigabyte access anywhere on a single floor, officials said in interviews. The draft authorizes “standard-power in 850-megahertz of the band and indoor low-power operations over the full 1,200-megahertz,” said a release. The Further NPRM “proposes to permit very low-power devices to operate across the 6 GHz band, to support high data rate applications including high-performance, wearable, augmented-reality and virtual-reality devices.” The FCC didn’t previously ask about that class of devices. “I can’t wait to see, and use, the new services and ideas brought forward because of our work here,” said Commissioner Mike O’Rielly: “Conclusion of the further notice, which must be done this year, should provide further improvements and functionality.” It's "an elegant way to enable the next generation of broadband and close the digital divide," while "protecting incumbent operations," Chris Szymanski, Broadcom director-government affairs, told us. This will “supercharge” unlicensed, he said. “We see the U.S. leading on Wi-Fi, on unlicensed issues, that are going to be critical for enabling 5G.” It creates "incentives for Wi-Fi users to spread their energy over extremely wide channels," which "greatly increases the capacity of Wi-Fi indoors" and better protects incumbent users, emailed Michael Calabrese, director of the Wireless Future Program at New America. The Utilities Technology Council will “continue to provide the FCC with technical detail demonstrating the very real interference potential from unlicensed use across all parts of the band and the need for thoroughly tested automated frequency coordination,” emailed Senior Vice President-Government and External Affairs Sharla Artz. The 5G fund meanwhile will target areas unlikely to be covered by the T-Mobile transaction commitments, Pai wrote. That takeover of Sprint was completed Wednesday, with the companies citing COVID-19. See our earlier bulletin about the completion: here. An article about the companies' plans is here. (We are putting coronavirus-related news in front of our pay wall.)

FCC Chairman Ajit Pai is expected to announce Wednesday he will seek a vote at the April 23 commissioners’ meeting on an order that would open the 6 GHz band to sharing with Wi-Fi, industry and FCC officials said in interviews. The issue has gotten heavy lobbying in recent weeks. Much recent debate involved when the FCC will require automatic frequency coordination (AFC) or allow low-level use without. The agency is expected to post the draft item Thursday. “The chairman seems determined to move ahead on this, which the FCC should since the current crisis is demonstrating just how critical it is to address all aspects of the home connectivity crunch,” said Michael Calabrese, director of the Wireless Future Program at New America. “Americans are learning fast that a high-speed fixed broadband connection doesn’t do much good if your Wi-Fi doesn’t have the capacity to distribute that connectivity to multiple users for high-bandwidth uses such as video conferencing and streaming video.” The commission didn’t comment Tuesday. Carriers made a push to get the FCC to change course and license some of the band for 5G. That doesn’t appear to have the support of commissioners, said Tom Struble, R Street Institute tech policy manager. “They may have come too late.” Industry partners “will want more of what they didn't get,” emailed Shane Tews of the American Enterprise Institute. As consumers, it “would be a win for us to have both better Wi-Fi and more mobile spectrum,” she said. Studies show indoor Wi-Fi authorized at an 8 dBm/MHz radiated power spectral density isn’t an interference threat, CableLabs said. Three-fourths of wireless traffic and more than half of internet traffic move over Wi-Fi, said the cable R&D group in a filing posted Monday in docket 18-295. Representatives of CTIA and member companies warned about the “impact that unlicensed indoor operations will have on nearby Fixed Service point-to-point receivers,” in a call with Office of Engineering and Technology staff. The association was joined by AT&T, Sprint, U.S. Cellular and Verizon. Consider licensing part of the band, Verizon asked. “Seeking additional comment on licensed use for some portion of the band need not delay action on unlicensed." IRobot said the FCC should partition the band, allowing Wi-Fi while “preserving a portion” for licensed use and unlicensed ultra-wideband devices.

The White House posted a 5G security report Tuesday, providing a high-level overview of efforts to secure networks. Industry and government officials said in interviews Wednesday the White House likely would have released the report as part of its planned April 1 5G summit, which was expected to focus on open networks, but posted it after postponing the event because of the COVID-19 pandemic (see 2003170004). The White House hasn't released its long-term national spectrum strategy, which had been expected last year. “5G infrastructure will be an attractive target for criminals and foreign adversaries due to the large volume of data it transmits and processes as well as the support that 5G will provide to critical infrastructure,” the report said. It sought speeding the rollout of 5G, assessing cybersecurity risks, “addressing risks to United States economic and national security during development and deployment of 5G infrastructure worldwide” and “promoting responsible global development and deployment of secure and reliable 5G infrastructure.” The report highlights work by the FCC and the National Economic Council and companies' role. The U.S. “will participate in the development of international 5G security principles through frameworks, such as the Prague 5G Security Conference,” the document said: The U.S. must play a role in international standards. “It’s very bare bones, thin on details,” said Lindsay Gorman, fellow with the German Marshall Fund’s Alliance for Securing Democracy. “I would like to see some more specifics on what relative agencies … will take a lead and how this coordination will happen.” The federal government has focused on rolling out 5G and making spectrum available and a “big diplomatic push,” particularly in Europe, to get other countries to exclude Chinese vendors from their networks, Gorman noted: “This document incorporates those objectives.” It’s positive the administration puts some focus on international standards, Gorman said. The report “takes a baby step” toward recognizing the U.S. needs to do more, she said. “I don’t think there’s anything new,” emailed Zack Cooper, China expert at the American Enterprise Institute. “This overview is a good first step, and it is good to see the White House continue to engage here, but this issue deserves more substance,” said Information Technology and Innovation Foundation Broadband and Spectrum Policy Director Doug Brake. The White House and FCC didn't comment.

Making more licensed mid-band spectrum available for 5G, beyond the citizens broadband radio service and C band, must remain an “urgent goal” for the U.S., said an Analysys Mason report released by CTIA Monday. An average of 382 MHz of licensed mid-band spectrum will be available in 13 other countries by the end of the year, compared to 70 MHz in the U.S., the report said.

The House passed the Senate-cleared Secure 5G and Beyond Act Wednesday by unanimous consent, as expected (see 2003040056). S-893 would require the president to develop a strategy for ensuring the security of 5G networks and infrastructure (see 1903270065). S-893 heads to President Donald Trump, who’s expected to sign it. House Commerce Committee Chairman Frank Pallone, D-N.J., and House Communications Subcommittee Chairman Mike Doyle, D-Pa., hailed House passage. “It is long past time that the Trump Administration prepare our networks for the 5G future” and “this bill will force the Administration to do exactly that and ensure federal agencies work together on a comprehensive plan,” Pallone and Doyle said. It’s the “latest in a series passed by the House that will help keep the American people safe and secure America’s wireless future. We urge the President to sign it quickly.” The Senate passed the Secure and Trusted Communications Networks Act last week. HR-4998 would allocate at least $1 billion to help U.S. communications providers remove from their networks Chinese equipment determined to threaten national security (see 2002270070).

The White House wants 5G to be deployed “rapidly, using a free-enterprise-drive approach,” Robin Colwell, special assistant to the president for technology, telecommunications and cybersecurity policy-National Economic Council, told a Free State Foundation conference Tuesday. “Strong domestic deployment is an absolute imperative for us, both to support a global-trusted marketplace for equipment and services and to deliver on the promise of 5G across America.” The next “killer app” will be “born right here and rapidly adopted worldwide,” she said. The FCC’s upcoming $9 billion 5G Fund “will help ensure that rural America is not left behind in the evolution to 5G,” she said: “It is impossible to overstate the critical importance of mid-band spectrum to 5G domestic deployment.” The FCC’s February C-band order (see 2002280044) “is a huge step in the right direction,” she said. The U.S. must lead on 5G research and development, Colwell said. “The latest market trends in network architecture, disaggregation, interoperability and virtualization” are “a very important part” of research, she said. “We must also recognize the opportunity inherent in the market trends and seek to accelerate innovation, which is what America does best.” The FCC plans a March 26 forum on 5G virtualized radio access networks (see 2002200058).