T-Mobile interferes with NextWave’s network, FCC finds

T-Mobile’s 5G network is interfering with NextWave’s network in New York City, the FCC found in a pair of new reports.

The FCC said its field agents conducted 2.5GHz signal strength measurements in a total of six locations across New York City in September. The agency reported that, in one set of tests, T-Mobile’s median signal strength ranged from 23 dB to 42 dB above the operator’s 47 dBµV/m legal limit. In another set of tests, the operator’s median signal strength ranged from 17 dB to 24 dB above T-Mobile’s 47 dBµV/m limit.

dBµV/m stands for decibels relative to a microvolt per meter. It basically measures how powerful a wireless signal is at a specific point. The FCC regulates the use of spectrum across the US, and ensures that spectrum licensees like T-Mobile operate their networks within the bounds of their licensed holdings. Importantly, T-Mobile’s speedy midband 5G network runs atop its 2.5GHz holdings.

The FCC’s investigation into the matter stems from complaints on the topic by NextWave.

And NextWave is not alone: As Light Reading has previously reported, other 2.5GHz wireless network operators like Redzone Wireless in Maine and Bloosurf in Maryland have also raised interference complaints against T-Mobile.

T-Mobile officials declined to comment on the FCC’s new Notice of Violations (NOVs). The company has roughly two weeks to tell the FCC how it plans to rectify the interference in New York.

The NextWave situation

A NextWave official, who declined to be identified, told Light Reading that the FCC’s Enforcement Bureau has been looking into the operator’s interference complaints for over a year. He said the company has seen similar interference problems in its other major markets.

The official suggested that NextWave plans to push forward with a significant expansion of its commercial network under the expectation that the FCC’s citations will compel T-Mobile to quit interfering with NextWave’s network.

NextWave first gained widespread notoriety in the 1990s by bidding heavily in the FCC’s PCS spectrum auction. In 2022, the company launched a private wireless 4G/5G network in New York City using 2.5GHz spectrum.

After a slight delay, NextWave announced in February that it would expand its private wireless network into markets including Los Angeles, San Francisco, Las Vegas, Philadelphia and Dallas.

Like T-Mobile, NextWave leases its spectrum in New York from educational entities and others.

To read the complete article, visit Light Reading.