FCC Spectrum Plan Sparks T-Mobile 5G Interference Fears

A proposal by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to allocate additional radio spectrum for satellite-to-phone services is facing strong opposition from T-Mobile. The carrier has voiced concerns that the plan could lead to significant interference, potentially degrading its 5G network performance. T-Mobile highlighted these issues in recent meetings with the FCC, as detailed in a regulatory filing. The proposal aims to open approximately 482 megahertz of spectrum, including a portion within the 2496-2690MHz bands, for secondary mobile-satellite service. T-Mobile, which holds licenses for most of this 2.5 GHz spectrum, uses it as the foundation for its Ultra Capacity 5G network, operating under a Time Division Duplexing (TDD) scheme. This terrestrial system relies on synchronized transmission and reception, a method T-Mobile argues cannot be replicated by satellites due to their significant signal delay. The carrier asserts that this synchronization challenge could result in dropped calls, including those to emergency services. Furthermore, T-Mobile estimates that this interference could lead to substantial degradation of cell site uplink coverage, potentially as high as 96% in some areas. Despite T-Mobile's objections, the FCC is reportedly developing a regulatory path to encourage competition in the mobile carrier market, which could benefit consumers. The agency's proposal acknowledges interference risks, but T-Mobile contends that proposed mitigation measures would render a significant portion of the spectrum unusable.