Federal Communications Commission Chairman Ajit Pai today announced that the agency has certified four Spectrum Access System (SAS) Administrators, paving the way for full commercial operations in the 3.5 GHz band.

FCC certified CommScope, Federated Wireless, Inc., Google and Sony, Inc. as Spectrum Access System (SAS) Administrators in the 3.55-3.7 GHz band (3.5 GHz band).

Last year, the FCC approved these SAS Administrators for initial commercial deployments. Today’s action allows for full commercial use of this critical mid-band spectrum for broadband connectivity and 5G.

“The FCC has made it a priority to free up mid-band spectrum for advanced wireless services like 5G. And today, I’m pleased to announce the latest step to achieve that priority: the approval of four systems that will enable the 3.5 GHz band to be put to use for the benefit of American consumers and businesses,” said Chairman Pai. “As with all of our efforts to execute on the 5G FAST plan, we’re pushing to get next-generation wireless services deployed in the 3.5 GHz band as quickly and efficiently as possible. I would like to thank Commissioner Mike O’Rielly for his leadership throughout this proceeding as well as the FCC staff and those in the private sector who have worked so hard to achieve this milestone.”