8/9 Coalition FCC Comments Proposing Open Access and Tribal Area Set Asides for the 12 and 13 GHz Bands

OTI’s Wireless Future Project filed comments with Public Knowledge on behalf of a coalition of Public Interest Organizations (PIOs), proposing that the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) authorize open and coordinated shared access to the entire 12.2 to 13.25 GHz band on a “use-it-or-share-it” basis. The PIOs also proposed the FCC set-aside all or a portion of the 12.2-12/7 GHz band (up to 500 MHz) for Tribal authorities and also authorize low-power, indoor-only (LPI) unlicensed use of the band to add capacity for next generation Wi-Fi. What follows is a summary of the Comments:

The Public Interest Organizations (“PIOs”) believe that expanding access to spectrum for terrestrial broadband use in the currently underutilized 1,050 megahertz between 12.2-13.25 GHz can facilitate the deployment of 5G services, promote competition, enhance the benefits of next generation Wi-Fi, spur innovation, and help to address the digital divide in underserved communities. But our groups also believe that these public interest goals can be best optimized if the Commission adopts rules that include the following proposals:

1. First, the PIOs urge the Commission to authorize non-exclusive and coordinated shared access to the 12 GHz band for both point-to-point (“PtP”) and point-to-multi-point (“PtMP”) services. This proceeding provides an excellent opportunity for the Commission to take another innovative leap forward in spectrum management policy to fuel the nation’s wireless future. Accordingly, our groups believe the public interest is best served by a new framework for fixed wireless access in 12 GHz that protects the operations of all band incumbents – including MVDDS licensees – but that greatly expands both the utility and usage of the band for terrestrial broadband. Conceptually, the PIOs propose a framework analogous to the three-tier Citizens Broadband Radio Service (“CBRS”): A primary tier that protects the fixed customer locations of the incumbent DBS and NGSO satellite services; a priority access tier for the expanded FWA deployments of incumbent MVDDS licensees; and a third tier of coordinated general authorized access on an opportunistic, non-interfering basis. The PIOs believe the Commission should take advantage of the need for an automated coordination system in 12 GHz to further expand use of the band to include not only priority access licensees (viz., the MVDDS incumbents), but also to open unused spectrum in the band on the same basis for general authorized access on a license-by-rule basis.
2. Second, the PIOs believe that a low-power, indoor-only unlicensed underlay in the 12 GHz band – ideally under the same technical rules as LPI in the 6 GHz band – can coexist with expanded terrestrial use for fixed wireless services (PtP and PtMP) that are inherently outdoors, higher power and directional by nature. We believe that LPI can coexist with higher-power FWA outdoors, as well as with the two incumbent satellite services. All of the licensed services would rely on outdoor antennas, rendering the signal attenuation from building entry loss a potentially decisive factor considering the propagation of at 12.2-12.7 GHz. Providing the LPI bandwidth needed to distribute the gigabit or greater connectivity from future fiber and other high-capacity broadband services also promotes the Commission’s digital equity and inclusion goals. We urge the Commission to task the Office of Engineering and Technology to explore this further once a decision has been made about the rules for terrestrial FWA.
3. Third, Tribal reservations (especially in rural areas) remain among the least served areas in the United States for wireless services (and communications services generally), in large part because high costs and low incomes make them less profitable for commercial operators. Accordingly, the PIOs urge the Commission to adopt a Tribal set-aside in 12.2 GHz and a Tribal Priority Window before any auction of the 12.7 GHz band. In 12 GHz, if the Commission expands the rights of incumbent MVDDS licensees to include FWA, a license modification should include a condition that all or at least a substantial portion of the channels on Tribal lands will be made freely available for broadband deployment at the request of Tribal authorities. The Commission should also move rapidly to adopt these provisions so that tribes can take advantage of the BEAD funding that could subsidize tribal deployment in the 12.2 and 12.7 GHz bands.
4. Fourth, in the 12.7 GHz band, the PIOs urge the Commission not to apply the same old ‘exclusive use’ and preclusive licensing area rules that respond only to the siren song of the three Big Mobile carriers. We urge the Commission to include a use-it-or-share-it condition as part of any exclusive licensing framework. We believe this is both exceptionally relevant and workable in this band, particularly if the Commission authorizes an automated frequency coordination system and opportunistic use in the adjacent 12.2 GHz band, as we propose above. As in the CBRS band, an automated spectrum management system in the adjacent 12.2-12.7 GHz band would allow GAA use of locally-unused spectrum with no risk or downside to the primary licensee.
5. Finally, the PIOs urge the Commission to auction the 12.7 GHz band in licensing areas no larger than counties. There is little need nor possibility that the 12.7 GHz band will be used as a ubiquitous coverage band over entire counties, let alone over PEAs that often combine metropolitan, rural and remote communities. Given the propagation of 12.7-13.25 GHz, the band will be used to add capacity to sites on a targeted basis in relatively high-revenue areas. Auctioning licenses as large as Partial Economic Areas would be a decision to foreclose competition and to leave the spectrum fallow for many, many years in rural, tribal and other underserved areas. The alternative path is to license areas no larger than counties, which would also spur competition in a way that PEAs will not, particularly from new mobile market entrants that now include the three largest cable companies.