Delay 3,800 Mhz auction until altimeter issues resolved, Sasktel tells ISED

Saskatchewan Telecommunications Holding Corp. has a “simple” recommendation for the Department of Innovation, Science and Economic Development (ISED) as it consults on the upcoming 3,800 Mhz auction: that it be delayed until the issue of 5G interference with radio altimeter (used to determine the altitude of an aircraft) is fully resolved. Sasktel’s comments came in the form of a reply, published Wednesday, to ISED’s December consultation on the process for the rollout of 3800 Mhz band (3650-3900 MHz). Sasktel argued that the Government of Canada raised almost $9 billion from carriers “who believed they were obtaining substantially unencumbered spectrum” in the most expensive auction in Canadian history. Post-auction, however, the government imposed restrictions which Sasktel said are “procedurally unfair, given that said restrictions were not known at the time of auction,” and have a material impact on the deployment value of the spectrum. In its own reply BCE Inc. also called the restrictions unnecessary and stifle innovation. “The creation of exclusion and protection zones hinders the ability of licensees to deploy 5G in areas with high economic activity and along major highways that cross through these zones. National restrictions on up-tilt and communication with drones restrict the development of innovative 5G use cases using mid-band spectrum. Real-world evidence simply does not support such restrictions for either the 3500 MHz or 3800 MHz spectrum bands,” Bell wrote. In January executives of several U.S. airlines wrote to leadership of the Federal Aviation Administration, the Department of Transportation, and the Federal Communications Commission to warn that commercial flights would be disrupted by the deployment of 5G services by U.S. telecom companies on C-band spectrum. Earlier that month the American telecom companies agreed to delay the deployment of 5G after the US Department of Transportation and the Federal Aviation Administration requested it. Saskel pointed to a quote from the president of Emirates airline, Richard Quest, made in a CNN article in which he called the situation in the United States "one of the most delinquent, utterly irresponsible" he has seen in his aviation career. Sasktel argued that to proceed with the auction would simply replicate the U.S. outcome “for no benefit.” “Globally, the auction and deployment of 3800 MHz is the subject of general consternation. While it might be very important for mobile 5G services, uncertainty as to whether 3800 MHz can be deployed safely challenges that potential value,” Sasktel argued in its reply. 5G Americas, an industry trade organization composed of telecommunications service providers and manufacturers, said the original testing conducted in the United States contained flawed inputs which produced incorrect results. “A number of factors resulted in artificial situations which did not resemble real-world landing scenarios and coexistence conditions for 5G and radio altimeters. A landing aircraft over the runway threshold would be at a lower height than 200 feet, with significantly better altimeter performance,” the group wrote. Bell also argued in its reply that 5G deployments in the 3400-3800 MHz band in Europe and 3700-4100 MHz band in Japan have been operational for a number of years without any reports of interference with radio altimeters. Telus Corp. told ISED in its reply that recent progress in the U.S. (where the Federal Aviation Administration approved more than 90 per cent of aircraft models to perform low-visibility landings at most airports in the presence of 5G deployments) suggests there is no reason that ISED and Transport Canada cannot complete their own studies before the auction in early 2023. “If, after completion of domestic and international studies, any mitigation measures are deemed to be required in 3800 MHz, such measures as applied to the 3800 MHz band must be time-limited, minimally intrusive" and should "include a burden of responsibility upon the aviation sector to modernise their equipment,” the incumbent wrote. Rogers Communications Inc. reiterated the latter point, arguing that “coexistence measures should be equally applied to both industries.” “The aviation industry should not be rewarded for continuing to rely on decades-old technology in radio altimeters, particularly models that do not include any filtering whatsoever. Radio equipment used for public safety, like altimeters, should perform at least as well, if not better, than consumer-grade mobile devices. Rogers further called on ISED to remove its measures placed on the 3,500 Mhz band and to “continue to work quickly” to determine whether temporary constraints are required for the 3800 MHz band due to the minimum 300 MHz of spectral separation. The incumbent also suggested ISED implement a “no-head start rule” to ensure there is a common start date for operators in each area to reduce valuation uncertainty because the interim radio altimeter coexistence measures could mean that some spectrum will be available at different times. Bell added that the cost to upgrade radio altimeters should be borne by the aviation industry, however, ISED should also subsidize the costs through the proceeds of the 3800 MHz auction if that is necessary to meet the deadline for using 3800 MHz spectrum licences. – Reporting by Jenna Cocullo at jcocullo@thewirereport.ca and editing by Michael Lee-Murphy at mleemurphy@thewirereport.ca

Delay 3,800 Mhz auction until altimeter issues resolved, Sasktel tells ISED

News | 03/03/2022 9:52 am EST

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