Representatives from the Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers (AAM), the Association of Global Automakers (AGA), GM and Toyota met Sept. 4 and 5 with aides to FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler and the other four FCC commissioners, along with Office of Engineering and Technology Chief Engineer Julius Knapp and other OET staff. The auto industry representatives said in an ex parte posted Tuesday that they briefed FCC staff on the status of Dedicated Short Range Communications (DSRC) operations in the 5.9 GHz band. The industry representatives also discussed their participation in the IEEE Tiger Team discussions exploring the feasibility of unlicensed use of the 5.9 GHz band (http://bit.ly/YxBlqz).

The FCC Office of Engineering and Technology (OET) said it granted approval for Google to operate its TV band database with new registration procedures for protected facilities (http://bit.ly/ZhbAuu). Google’s new registration procedures replace procedures used by Spectrum Bridge, another approved TV band database administrator that currently manages registration of protected entities on Google’s behalf. OET began a 45-day limited public trial of the new registration procedures June 2 (CD May 29 p6). Google is providing requisite registration facilities for protection registration online, OET said Wednesday.

Amazon said Prime members in the U.S., U.K and Germany can view Prime Instant Video on Android phones after downloading the latest update of the Amazon App for Android (http://bit.ly/1qCxB1h). Android smartphone users will have access to more than 200,000 movies and TV show episodes via the Prime Instant Video player app at no cost in addition to Prime membership, which was raised in April to $99 per year, the company said Tuesday.

Apple revealed plans for a new mobile payment system called Apple Pay during a Tuesday event in which the company unveiled a number of new products, including the iPhone 6. (See separate report above in this issue.) “We're totally reliant on the exposed numbers and the security codes that all of us know aren’t secure,” said Apple CEO Tim Cook during his presentation. Apple Pay allows users to scan a credit card, Cook said, uploading the information into their phone or Apple Watch -- a new wearable smart watch the company announced Tuesday. Cook said this process will be more secure because it generates a different code each time a user pays, reducing credit card information exposure. Apple has faced FTC action over unauthorized in-app mobile purchases, agreeing to refund at least $32.5 million in January (CD Jan 16 p12). Apple account security was also questioned after the hacking of dozens of celebrities’ Apple accounts. Apple Pay will be available in October, said the company’s website (http://bit.ly/1tIjfyR).

A day before the anticipated debut of the iPhone 6, T-Mobile vowed Monday to “beat the big carriers’ best trade-in values on used devices” and help consumers “get the very best deal on the hottest new devices.” Consumers can now have peace of mind when they're ready to upgrade, “knowing that their trade-in at T-Mobile is the best deal they'll find anywhere compared to AT&T, Sprint and Verizon,” T-Mobile said (http://bit.ly/1ufQbgI). The industry will soon see introduction of “some of the most phenomenal devices ever,” T-Mobile CEO John Legere said in a statement. “That means a whole lot of Americans trading-in their devices and upgrading. For years, the big carriers have been ripping off their customers with low-ball trade-in values, so we're putting an end to that and guaranteeing we'll give customers what they deserve -- the best value in the industry.” To make good on its guarantee, “T-Mobile will track the market every day to ensure we keep our promise,” the company said. “If a customer can find a better trade-in offer from a major national carrier, T-Mobile will beat that offer, give them the difference back and because we value this help from our customers we will top it off with another $50!” The offer begins Sept. 17 and will run “for a limited time,” it said.

Cricket Wireless teamed with GameStop to offer Cricket’s no-annual contract service in more than 2,800 GameStop locations in the U.S. The service will be available for sale next month, Cricket said Monday in a news release (http://bit.ly/1qHCAwg). Phased rollout is expected to be completed by the end of October, it said.

AT&T Vice President-Federal Regulatory Joan Marsh and other AT&T executives urged officials from the FCC’s Wireless Bureau Thursday to categorically exclude small cell and DAS deployments from National Environmental Policy Act and National Historic Preservation Act reviews. Small cell and DAS deployments “allow carriers to expand their networks to provide coverage in areas that are hard or impossible to reach with a traditional macro tower,” AT&T said in an ex parte filed Friday. The telco’s executives also said they support PCIA’s proposal for the cubic volume-based definition of small cells and DAS, and discussed proposals to clarify definitions under Section 6409 and make permanent the FCC’s current interim waiver of temporary towers from compliance with the environmental notice process. AT&T executives also praised the FCC’s Part 17 order as part of its effort to prioritize infrastructure (http://bit.ly/1CKwd1v).

Sprint said it reached LTE agreements with 15 rural and regional carriers as part of its Rural Roaming Preferred Program to provide carriers with access to Sprint’s LTE network. The program, developed with the Competitive Carriers Association, will now include 27 carriers across 27 states with a combined population of more than 38 million people, Sprint said Friday. The new carriers are: Kentucky-based Bluegrass Cellular, New York- and Pennsylvania-based Blue Wireless, Alabama-based Pine Belt Wireless, Kansas- and Oklahoma-based Pioneer Cellular, Alabama- and Georgia-based Public Service Wireless, Idaho-based Syringa Wireless, and nine Rural Independent Network Alliance (RINA) member carriers and their partners (http://bit.ly/1qAKCby).

The launch of a new iPhone model historically has caused “major depreciation” in the resale value of older iPhones, said uSell.com, which calls itself the “leading online marketplace for used gadgets.” With Tuesday’s expected launch of the iPhone 6, uSell.com examined thousands of used iPhone sales on its platform after the launch of previous new models, it said. It found that two weeks after a new iPhone launch, old iPhones lose about 11 percent of their resale value. After four weeks, they depreciate about 15 percent, it said. By the seventh week, an old iPhone will have lost 21 percent of its value, it said.

The more smart watches that hit the market -- from consumer electronics companies trying to ignite sales and luxury watchmakers trying to protect their turf -- the more industry watchers are questioning the need for the category. All eyes are on Apple’s announcement Tuesday in the hopes that Apple gives the world a shiny, compelling reason to buy an extra gadget in the way it created the smartphone. In a blog post Friday, NPD Connected Intelligence analyst Eddie Hold said smart watches haven’t added value to date. “It doesn’t do anything that my smartphone doesn’t already handle with ease,” Hold said. “It’s just another gadget (and a rather bulky one at that) that I need to remember to charge at night.” Smart watch companies hope consumers are more jazzed about the technology than cynical observers. Timex has jumped into the smart watch market and Guess linked up with Martian Watches last month, while at IFA last week Asus, LG, Samsung and Sony rolled out their own versions.