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  "description": "CTIA wants 220 megahertz of Upper C-Band for 5G; Congress only guaranteed 100 megahertz.",
  "path": "/carriers-push-fcc-for-extra-upper-c-band-spectrum/",
  "publishedAt": "2025-10-01T17:45:56.000Z",
  "site": "https://broadbandbreakfast.com",
  "tags": [
    "_Sept. 24 meeting_",
    "_One Big Beautiful Bill_",
    "_on July 4_",
    "_in February_"
  ],
  "textContent": "WASHINGTON, Oct. 1, 2025 – Wireless carriers are eyeing more mid-band spectrum than Congress promised.\n\nA law enacted in July called for 100 megahertz of Upper C-band to be auctioned, but wireless industry association CTIA last week asked the Federal Communications Commission for more than double that.\n\nIn a _Sept. 24 meeting_ with FCC staff, CTIA representatives urged the FCC to make “as much as 220” megahertz of Upper C-Band available for full-power terrestrial wireless use. They were joined by executives from AT&T, T-Mobile, and Verizon.\n\nThe _One Big Beautiful Bill_ which President **Donald** **Trump** signed _on July 4_, directs the FCC to put 300 megahertz of spectrum up for competitive bidding within two years, with no less than 100 megahertz coming from the Upper C-band between 3.98 and 4.2 GigaHertz (GHz).\n\nFCC Chairman **Brendan Carr** signaled the agency’s interest in expanding the Upper C-Band when, _in February_, the Commission adopted a notice of inquiry on whether spectrum between 3.98 and 4.2 GHz should be opened for more intensive use.\n\nCTIA urged the FCC to “mov[e] quickly to adopt the proposed rules,” highlighting “the favorable\n\ncharacteristics of mid-band airwaves,” and saying that “Upper C-band spectrum will deliver more of the capabilities and capacities that C-band frequencies enable today.”\n\nIn 2021, the FCC reallocated 280 MHz of the lower C-band between 3.7–3.98 GHz for 5G terrestrial use, leaving the Upper C-band, 3.98–4.2 GHz, for satellite incumbents, bringing in more than $81 billion from wireless carriers.\n\nSatellite incumbents, such as Intelsat and SES, still operate in the Upper C-Band. Carriers’ request would mean pushing those players to clear out more spectrum than Congress guaranteed.\n\nCTIA argued that “the market-driven approach applied in the initial C-Band transition can be leveraged to put Upper C-Band spectrum to more intensive use,” and the FCC could “advance this proceeding consistent with that successful model.”\n\nMid-band spectrum is particularly valuable for 5G because it strikes a balance between wide-area coverage and high capacity.\n\nBy contrast, low-band airwaves travel farther but deliver slower speeds, while millimeter-wave frequencies can provide ultra-fast connections only over short distances.",
  "title": "Carriers Push FCC for Extra Upper C-Band Spectrum",
  "updatedAt": "2026-03-11T05:45:08.512Z"
}