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Recent News
Study finds FCC permitting reform could remove billions in costs burdening wireless construction
Longstanding federal environmental and historic preservation review requirements are imposing billions of dollars in avoidable costs and delays on wireless infrastructure deployment, according to a new study by NERA Economic Consulting, with the downstream impact falling heavily on tower owners,...
Cartesian study confirms labor-driven fiber cost increases, not whether contractors are made whole
The Fiber Deployment Cost Annual Report 2025, released by the Fiber Broadband Association (FBA) in partnership with Cartesian, confirms what fiber contractors have been experiencing on the ground: deployment costs are rising nearly across the board, with labor, permitting,...
NATE launches “ClimbCast” with a safety-first message and a technical reality check on tower work
NATE: The Communications Infrastructure Contractors Association has debuted the first episode of its new podcast, ClimbCast, using the premiere installment to reinforce a message the association says has been embedded in its mission since day one: safety is not...
Kennedy’s RF inquiry raises questions, but little immediate concern for wireless sector over health risk
As the FCC advances a deregulatory push to accelerate 5G and soon 6G infrastructure deployments, a potentially competing health-policy track is emerging within the Trump administration: Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is moving to launch...
Transmission line theft at SC site under investigation as authorities probe damage to one or more towers
The Florence County Sheriff’s Office (FCSO) is seeking public assistance in an investigation involving the theft of copper-bearing transmission line from a communications site at 2423 Walker-Swinton Road in Florence County, SC, where authorities say two individuals damaged and...
NATE, WIA urge FCC to protect contractor and tower owners’ payments in EchoStar spectrum review
NATE: The Communications Infrastructure Contractors Association and the Wireless Infrastructure Association (WIA) are jointly pressing the Federal Communications Commission to ensure that contractors, tower owners, and other infrastructure partners are paid for work already performed before the agency approves...
Crown Castle says DISH defaulted on payments, terminates tower agreement claiming $3.5 Billion owed
Crown Castle Inc. issued a press release late this afternoon, stating that DISH Wireless has defaulted on its payment obligations, prompting the tower operator to terminate its wireless infrastructure agreement and seek recovery of more than $3.5 billion in remaining...
DISH files its response in Crown Castle’s MSA lawsuit, echoing its defense used against American Tower
DISH Network filed its formal response Friday to Crown Castle’s lawsuit, reinforcing a legal strategy it first deployed earlier this year in its answer to American Tower’s similar complaint. Together, the filings underscore a widening dispute between DISH and...
Verizon sues Kansas City condo association over threatened interference with rooftop cell site
Verizon Wireless has filed a federal lawsuit seeking emergency injunctive relief against a Kansas City, MO condominium association, arguing that planned rooftop construction could interfere with a long-standing cell site and disrupt wireless service for thousands of customers across...
Appeals court upholds DISH lease ruling as Crown Castle tower payments remain in legal limbo
A Colorado appellate court has unanimously affirmed a jury verdict in favor of DISH Wireless in a $32 million lease dispute with Crown Castle, reinforcing how ambiguity in master lease agreements can carry significant financial consequences for both carriers...
NATE sunsets CertTrac as it develops a new certification tracking platform aligned with STAR
NATE: The Communications Infrastructure Contractors Association has officially deactivated its OneVizion-powered CertTrac certification tracking system as it moves forward with the development of a new, modern certification platform designed to integrate with its expanding STAR safety management system. Effective January 1, CertTrac...
FCC’s ‘Build America’ proposal draws widespread opposition as comments top 3,000
Filings in the FCC’s Build America: Eliminating Barriers to Wireless Deployments proceeding (WT Docket No. 25-276) began appearing in late October 2025, weeks before the formal comment period, and have continued steadily as the docket has grown to more than...
Verizon to pay $7.7 million to settle California environmental violations at hundreds of cell tower sites
Verizon Wireless will pay $7.7 million to resolve a statewide civil enforcement action alleging widespread violations of California environmental laws governing hazardous materials at hundreds of the company’s wireless cell tower sites, according to multiple district attorneys’ offices involved...
FBI raids, 340 towers, 65-year prison sentences: Why the viral YouTube story is fake
A viral YouTube video in industry circles is claiming that the Sinaloa Cartel secretly owned and operated hundreds of U.S. cell towers—using them to spy on federal agents and coordinate drug trafficking—is a fabrication, unsupported by any court records,...
Is It time for a sweet sixteen party, or is the SoftBank–DigitalBridge $16 acquisition deal still pending?
SoftBank Group’s agreement to acquire DigitalBridge Group, Inc., announced today, has quickly drawn attention across the digital infrastructure investment community, not only because of the transaction’s strategic importance but also because of how the $16-per-share price will be paid...
Local governments warn FCC expansion of permitting authority could trigger litigation
Local governments are warning the Federal Communications Commission that attempts to expand its authority over broadband and wireless infrastructure permitting could result in court challenges, according to the most recent filings in the agency’s ongoing “Build America” proceedings. In...
A Christmas messge to the Wireless Estimator family
As 2025 comes to a close, we want to thank our readers, partners, and friends across the wireless infrastructure community for being part of the Wireless Estimator family. This time of year is an opportunity to reflect, recharge, and...
SUCCESS for BEAD Act could open new construction and training opportunities beyond fiber deployment
While the Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) program has primarily been viewed as a fiber-centric initiative, newly introduced legislation could significantly expand opportunities for wireless infrastructure and construction firms once initial deployment obligations are met. By allowing states...
Why Sen. Luján forced the FCC’s “Independence” question — and why Carr let it end with a website change
The most contentious moment in this week’s Senate oversight hearing of Federal Communications Commission leadership had nothing to do with spectrum auctions, broadband deployment, or media ownership. Instead, it revolved around a single word that has defined the agency...
Built for speed and performance: ConcealFab launches Side Enclosures for faster small cell rollouts
Valmont Telecom, the wireless infrastructure business of Valmont Industries, has introduced the ConcealFab Side Enclosure portfolio, a new family of RF-transparent, pole-mounted outdoor cabinets engineered to support the rapid expansion of 5G small cells, fiber networks, and private LTE/5G...
American Tower presses court for early judgment regarding DISH’s tower rent obligations
American Tower has escalated its legal battle with DISH Wireless, asking a federal judge to rule as a matter of law that DISH cannot walk away from billions of dollars in tower lease obligations by claiming its business strategy...
Inside the $300 million contracting scandal—apparently linked to a major U.S. carrier—that brought down ASG
Indictment reveals years of bribery, forged invoices, shell companies, and concealed payments inside a telecom contracting giant When the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York unsealed an indictment against Allstate Sales Group’s (ASG) CEO Anthony Tepedino...
Skyline Tower Painting, president plead guilty and fined $50K after lead paint chips fall on neighborhoods
Maryland Attorney General Anthony G. Brown has announced that Skyline Tower Painting, Inc. of Colorado and its President, Christopher Mecklem, 43, of Scottsbluff, Nebraska, each pleaded guilty to criminal violations of Maryland’s environmental laws for the illegal dispersal and...
FCC presses Supreme Court to combine Verizon and AT&T fights over massive fines that vacate jury trials
The Federal Communications Commission is urging the U.S. Supreme Court to hear Verizon’s challenge to a $46.9 million location-privacy fine together with a parallel case involving AT&T’s vacated $57 million penalty, saying the Court should resolve—once and for all—whether...
NATE announces 2026 Board election results; Strong member turnout reflects industry crossroads
NATE: The Communications Infrastructure Contractors Association announced the official results of its 2026 Board of Directors election, marking one of the strongest principal-contractor participation rates in recent history. The Association’s independent accounting firm, VRS, tabulated and certified all ballots...
Gin pole failure claims a tech’s life on an Atlantic City tower, the 2nd fatality this week, the 6th this year
A 44-year-old tower technician died late yesterday afternoon in Atlantic City, N.J., after a gin pole reportedly failed while a crew was removing an abandoned FM pylon from atop a 347-foot self-supporting tower located off Murray Avenue, near the...
South Carolina tower tech dies after 100-foot fall in Wisconsin, marking troubling fifth industry fatality of 2025
On Monday, December 1, at approximately 10:30 a.m., a tower technician fell from a cell tower and later succumbed to his injuries, according to the Douglas County, Wisconsin Sheriff’s Office in a brief statement. Sheriff Matt Izzard said his...
NATE and AT&T reach a landmark deal — What it means for the tower-contracting industry
In a move that could rewrite the business model for how America’s wireless infrastructure gets built and maintained, NATE: The Communications Infrastructure Contractors Association and AT&T recently reached an agreement to overhaul longstanding contracting practices. According to NATE, the...
Crown Castle follows American Tower’s lead, suing DISH for attempting to walk away from its MSA
Crown Castle has become the second major tower operator to sue DISH Wireless after the carrier notified infrastructure partners of its intent to shed large portions of its wireless business through spectrum-sale transactions. Just weeks after American Tower filed...
DigitalBridge secures $11.7 B for DBP III as demand surges for AI-era infrastructure, yet stock performance lags
DigitalBridge Group, Inc. announced a major financial milestone with the closing of its third value-added digital infrastructure fund, DigitalBridge Partners III, securing more than $7.2 billion in commitments. When combined with $4.5 billion in limited-partner co-investment commitments that accompany...
Texas tower technician’s death leads to OSHA citation and reduced penalty of $4,500 to RB Telecom Services
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has issued a “serious” violation and settlement fine of $4,500 to RB Telecom Services, LLC, following the fatal fall of a tower technician working on a T-Mobile build at an American Tower site...
BEAD goes big: NTIA signs off on 18 plans, $9 billion now unlocked
The NTIA announced that it has approved 18 final BEAD proposals — 15 U.S. states and 3 U.S. territories — under the $42.5 billion BEAD program. The approved states and territories are: Louisiana; Wyoming; Iowa; Georgia; Arkansas; Delaware; Maine;...
NWSA adds Crown Castle’s Case and Ansco’s Sams to Its leadership team
The National Wireless Safety Alliance (NWSA) has announced that Josh Case, Senior Safety Manager at Crown Castle, and Andy Sams, Vice President of Wireless Operations at Ansco & Associates, have been appointed as members of the organization’s Board of...
The race for mid-band spectrum: Why speed and scale matter for America’s wireless future
By Iain Gillott, Vice President of Technology & Innovation, WIA Even better than Stella getting her groove back, the FCC got its spectrum auction authority back thanks to the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA). And with it, an obligation to...
From arbitration to Peppertree execs’ arrest warrants, Continental Towers dispute spreads across borders
A federal judge in New York has issued a civil contempt ruling against DT Holdings, Inc., an affiliate of Terra Towers Corp., after the company failed to turn over documents related to an ongoing criminal investigation in Guatemala. The...
Virginia — First of the 13 Colonies — Now the 13th state in South Wireless Association’s network
The South Wireless Association (SWA) is proud to announce the addition of the Virginia Wireless Association (VAWA) to its growing regional network, expanding SWA’s footprint to 13 states and 10 state wireless associations across the southern United States. This...
WIA strengthens technology leadership, appointing Iain Gillott to key innovation role
The Wireless Infrastructure Association (WIA) has announced that Iain Gillott has joined the organization as Vice President of Technology and Innovation. In this role, Gillott will provide technical and strategic advice to WIA in a fast-evolving wireless and digital...
Verizon and SBA Communications announce long-term tower lease agreement
Verizon and SBA Communications have announced a new long-term agreement, securing a favorable framework that will drive significant cost certainty and support the continued expansion of Verizon’s world-class 4G and 5G services. This new agreement provides the flexibility needed...
Boost turns to bust: American Tower sues to stop DISH ditching tower rent; towercos could lose $9 billion
American Tower has taken DISH Wireless to federal court, warning that the company’s recent multibillion-dollar spectrum selloff does not excuse its continued obligation to pay rent on thousands of cell towers across the United States—and that the financial fallout...
Tilson’s $200 million Gigapower lawsuit is sold to Winston I LLC for an undisclosed amount
Bankrupt Tilson Technology Management has sold its $200 million breach-of-contract lawsuit against Gigapower — the AT&T and BlackRock-backed open-access fiber venture — to Winston I LLC, a Delaware-registered entity that now assumes control of the litigation, according to a...
The great telecom invoice factoring illusion: How New York financier Carriox Capital fooled the money men
New York-based Carriox Capital II LLC and its related companies — once presented as agile financing vehicles in telecom receivables — are now buried in Chapter 11 bankruptcy filings that reveal a staggering $552 million secured debt and almost...
NWSA survey reveals strong confidence in certification standards for real-world safety and skill alignment
The National Wireless Safety Alliance (NWSA) conducted its 2025 Customer Experience Survey in June, inviting professionals from across the telecommunications and tower industry to share their feedback on NWSA’s certification process and related services. The survey revealed that most...
Tower technician fatally injured after fall from a 125-foot structure in Marion, Iowa
At approximately 12:30 p.m. on Friday, October 10, the Marion, Iowa, Fire Department was dispatched to a reported tower accident at 3602 N. 10th Street in Marion, where an individual had fallen from a communications tower and was found...
Multiple contractors allege they’re being pressured to accept deep discounts on completed work for DISH
Wireless Estimator has been contacted by multiple sources representing wireless-construction firms who allege that EchoStar/DISH is pressuring vendors to accept steep “after-the-fact” discounts on already-approved and completed projects—some exceeding 50 percent off previously agreed-upon payment amounts. Although each source...
Communications infrastructure theft and vandalism are more severe than presented in trade groups’ report
Two new reports, “Protecting Critical Communications Infrastructure” and “The Real Costs of Communications Outages Due to Infrastructure Theft or Vandalism,” released at the Third Telecom Industry Summit last week, reveal alarming data on the surge in attacks on telecom infrastructure....
Wireless Estimator’s Blue Book reinvents how the industry connects to contractors, services and suppliers
For more than 15 years, the Wireless Estimator Blue Book™ Buyer’s Guide has been the telecom industry’s go-to resource for connecting carriers, general contractors, and site owners with the right vendors and crews. Now, it’s not just keeping pace...
Verizon acquires Starry to bolster fixed wireless in multi-dwelling units, taking it off of life support
Verizon Communications has agreed to acquire Starry, the Boston-based fixed wireless broadband provider that serves apartments and businesses from rooftop antennas. The deal, which is expected to close in early 2026, did not require an SEC filing, signaling it’s...
Dan Schulman takes Verizon’s helm, but will he commit to tackling untenable wireless contractor pricing?
Commentary Verizon has named Dan Schulman, former PayPal chief and longtime Verizon board member, as CEO, succeeding Hans Vestberg. Vestberg will remain as a special adviser through 2026 to assist with the transition and integration of Frontier. In his...
From the Hill to harness: SBA, NATE & Banner give DC staffers a hands-on view of wireless rollout challenges
NATE: The Communications Infrastructure Contractors Association and member companies SBA Communications, an independent provider of critical wireless infrastructure, and contractor firm Banner Enterprise LLC, recently hosted a unique cell tower climbing experience and legislative advocacy event at an SBA...
Cellular coup stopped: What 300,000 rogue SIM cards could do to New York City and other U.S. cities
What was first described last week as a cache of roughly 100,000 SIM cards seized in New York City has now been reassessed as possibly 300,000 after follow-on leads developed since the initial discovery. That escalation isn’t cosmetic; it...
NATE and CCA cheer FCC’s push to speed America’s broadband builds and cut red tape
Two key industry groups, NATE: The Communications Infrastructure Contractors Association and the Competitive Carriers Association (CCA), applauded the Federal Communications Commission for advancing an item from its September Open Meeting yesterday, aimed at expediting broadband buildouts and removing unlawful state...
Alaska’s BEAD sticker shock: $113,578 per location is 181% higher than New Mexico’s high $40,433 benchmark
Alaska’s preliminary BEAD award slate landed last week with a six-figure outlier that dwarfs even the pricey builds called out elsewhere. When New Mexico’s $40,433-per-location fiber proposal drew scrutiny in August, it became a national reference point for “too...
NATE’s Fifth Annual Women’s Leadership Summit delivers inspiration, connection, and growth
The Women of NATE (WON) lit up Baltimore on Thursday, September 18, 2025, with the Fifth Annual Women’s Leadership Summit—a dynamic celebration of leadership, learning, and connection. With a record-setting 130 passionate attendees and the backing of 24 generous...
T-Mobile’s incoming CEO, Srini Gopalan, brings fiber-first playbook; will towers lose out?
T-Mobile confirmed that Srini Gopalan will succeed Mike Sievert as CEO, effective November 1, 2025. The leadership change comes amid reports that Sievert, whose contract was set to run longer, was rumored to be resigning earlier than expected. He...
AT&T and Verizon flee ‘high rent’ American Tower site: Tillman’s build-to-relocate strategy sparks lawsuit
Tillman Infrastructure has sued Stearns County in Minnesota after the Planning Commission turned down its bid to construct a 325-foot tower in rural Kimball. Tillman says the denial violates the Telecommunications Act of 1996, which requires that local governments’...
RF Industries’ Q3 shows momentum: double-digit growth, fatter margins, and new wins in aerospace and 5G
RF Industries turned in a strong fiscal Q3 2025, notching year-over-year growth, improved profitability, and meaningful traction in newer end-markets. In the quarter ended July 31, net sales climbed to about $19.8 million, up 17.5% from the prior year...
Services set for remembering Toby Cole: Tower tech, family man, and a proud Texan
Services have been announced for Toby Cole, 62, of Harlingen, TX, who passed away September 12 after he fell from a tower he was servicing in Little Rock, AR. Born on July 12, 1963, he is preceded in death by...
NTCH lawsuit against T-Mobile alleges $20 million in lost tower development revenues
NTCH, Inc. and several of its affiliates are pursuing a high-stakes lawsuit against T-Mobile USA, Inc. in King County Superior Court in Washington, accusing the wireless carrier of breaching a contractual commitment that was supposed to provide the tower...
Two sides of the same coin: Why fiber contractors are rallying behind a new petition—and why NATE’s playbook matters
A new petition circulating in the fiber-construction community by PACTEL argues that conditions facing wireline fiber companies mirror the pressures long documented by wireless contractors—thin margins, take-it-or-leave-it MSAs, slow change-order approvals, and payment delays that cascade into layoffs, safety compromises,...
Texas tower tech dies after fall at Little Rock antenna farm; sheriff identifies victim as Toby Cole
A Texas man died Friday after falling from a tower along Two Towers Road west of Little Rock, AR, an area known for its cluster of broadcast and communications structures on Shinall Mountain. The Pulaski County Sheriff’s Office said...
Tower crews lose work as Boost’s open RAN ambitions as the nation’s fourth carrier collapse
The prospect of Boost Mobile emerging as an actual “fourth national carrier” has collapsed following EchoStar’s multi-billion-dollar spectrum sales to AT&T and SpaceX. Together, the transactions dismantle Dish/EchoStar’s original 5G greenfield buildout and confirm that the U.S. market will...
Contractor ASG sued in federal court over WARN Act violations; execs named in New Jersey complaint
Just one week after broadband infrastructure company Allstate Sales Group, Inc. (ASG) abruptly froze operations and delayed paychecks, leaving an estimated 500 workers jobless, a federal class action lawsuit has been filed in the U.S. District Court for the...
AT&T Mexico withholding rent puts $300M a year at risk for American Tower, clouding its cash flow
AT&T Mexico—a legally separate subsidiary from AT&T Mobility (U.S.) with its own master lease—has been withholding tower rent since early 2025, American Tower told investors last Friday in a late afternoon SEC filing. In 2024, AT&T Mexico contributed about...
Infrastructure contractor ASG freezes operations and delays paychecks; roughly 500 workers laid off
UPDATE, Sept. 9, 2025 – A class action WARN Act lawsuit has been filed against Allstate Sales Group and two of its executives. Telecom infrastructure contractor Allstate Sales Group (ASG) has laid off roughly 500 employees who say they...
Tilson’s $22 million sale to ITG Communications underscores the deep discount of a distressed auction
Wireless Estimator’s early presumption that Tilson would ultimately sell at a “fire sale” price following its bankruptcy has proven correct. Despite the company’s July balance sheet superficially showing more than $361 million in assets, Tilson announced in a press...
500-foot broadcast tower toppled, $500K in damage—but sentences seen as too lenient
Two Oklahoma residents received what many consider light sentences after a copper theft that collapsed a 500-foot FM tower and caused more than $500,000 in damage, knocking Payne Media Group’s K95.5 (KITX) off the air in January 2024. Prosecutors...
New Mexico’s $40,433-per-doorstep BEAD fiber should face a tech-neutral sanity check
Commentary: Valley Telephone Cooperative is slated for $40,433 per passing (300 locations), the highest line item in New Mexico’s final BEAD proposal. Oso Internet Solutions isn’t far behind at $39,253 (729 locations). In parts of Valley’s footprint, the typical...
AT&T to buy EchoStar spectrum for $23B, adding 600 MHz and 3.45 GHz licenses across ~400 U.S. markets
AT&T said it will acquire a nationwide bundle of wireless spectrum from EchoStar for about $23 billion in cash, a move the company says will bolster its 5G coverage and capacity and accelerate growth in both wireless and home-internet...
NATE’s Tough Tower video captures skill, safety, speed—and Verità’s win
NATE: The Communications Infrastructure Contractors Association has released a new video that highlights the skill, safety, and teamwork on display at the 2025 Tough Tower Event in North Jackson, Ohio, held in June. The annual competition, built around real-world...
Radio Activo wins order to stop American Tower from tearing down Nevada broadcast site; power shutoff stands for now
A federal judge in Nevada granted Radio Activo Broadcasting LLC a temporary restraining order (TRO) blocking American Towers LLC and Insite Towers, LLC from decommissioning, dismantling, or removing the 190-foot self-supporting tower that carries the broadcaster’s signal, but declined...
DigitalBridge-led capital fuels Vantage’s new $25 billion 1.4-GW “Frontier” data center in Texas
Vantage Data Centers, a DigitalBridge Group-backed hyperscale data center portfolio company, has announced its most significant investment to date of over $25 billion to develop a mega-scale 1.4GW data center campus in Shackelford County, Texas. The state-of-the-art campus, “Frontier,”...
Harmoni moves fast to remove 295-foot tower above Alabama highway after foundation failure was discovered
A 295-foot, multi-tenant self-supporting tower perched about 60 feet above an Alabama highway is being dismantled by crane this week after inspectors found it leaning and at risk of collapse in Cullman County late last week. The structure, owned...
‘Tracking device’ ruling: Court upholds $92M fine; T-Mobile and Sprint’s pay-first move ends jury bid
A three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit upheld $92 million in Federal Communications Commission forfeitures against T-Mobile and Sprint for failing to safeguard customer location data. Writing for a unanimous court, Judge Florence...
Cell tower legal showdown: Developers score wins in two out of three federal siting cases
Three separate rulings in New Hampshire, Virginia, and Florida over the past week have reshaped the legal landscape for wireless infrastructure deployment on the East Coast. From outright victories for developers to partial wins for a local government, the...
SpaceX blasts Virginia’s $613M broadband plan as wasteful, biased against Starlink
SpaceX has accused the Commonwealth of Virginia of wasting hundreds of millions in federal broadband funds and rigging its Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) program in favor of high-cost fiber projects at the expense of faster, cheaper, and...
CTIA names Verizon’s Kyle Malady Chairman, succeeding LT Therivel following UScellular’s sale to T-Mobile
CTIA has appointed Kyle Malady, Executive Vice President and Chief Executive Officer of Verizon Business, as Chairman of CTIA’s Board of Directors, effective immediately. He succeeds Laurent “LT” Therivel, who is stepping down following UScellular’s completion of the sale...
DigitalBridge and Crestview to take WOW! private in $1.5 billion deal, offering a 63% premium to shareholders
WideOpenWest, Inc. (WOW!) has entered into a definitive agreement to be acquired by investment funds affiliated with DigitalBridge Investments, LLC and Crestview Partners for $5.20 per share in cash, valuing the transaction at approximately $1.5 billion. The all-cash deal,...
Array Digital CEO Douglas Chambers joins WIA Board as the new towerco posts strong Q2 results
The Wireless Infrastructure Association (WIA) today announced the appointment of Douglas W. Chambers to its Board of Directors. Chambers, formerly U.S. Cellular’s CFO, is now serving as Interim President and CEO of Array Digital Infrastructure, the newly spun-off tower...
Fallen communication tower, not cell tower, knocks out power to 25,000 in Carol Stream, Illinois
More than 25,000 ComEd customers lost electricity Friday after a communication tower collapsed onto a high-voltage transmission line in Carol Stream, Illinois, knocking out power across several DuPage County communities. The outage began in the afternoon and affected a...
AT&T chooses a $45/month romance over a long-term relationship with copper at $25K
In a recent FCC filing, AT&T Services, acting on behalf of Southwestern Bell Telephone Company (AT&T Texas), requested permission from the FCC to permanently discontinue TDM‑based Plain Old Telephone Service (POTS) to a single residential customer in the Forrest...
Deadly consequences: NATE survey seeks to prevent rope-related incidents
Rope failure in the telecommunications industry isn’t just inconvenient — it can be deadly. Despite the critical role ropes play in rigging, fall protection, and rescue operations, the industry continues to see rope-related incidents, some with catastrophic consequences. Now,...
Christian Hillabrant named CEO of Crown Castle, promising visionary leadership and driving growth
Crown Castle Inc. has announced that its Board of Directors has appointed Christian Hillabrant, 59, as President and Chief Executive Officer, effective September 15, 2025. Hillabrant is also expected to join the Company’s Board at that time. P. Robert Bartolo, Chair of...
Issa Asad, Q Link founder, sentenced to five years for largest criminal FCC fraud in U.S. history
In a stunning fall from grace, Issa Asad, the 51-year-old founder and CEO of Q Link Wireless, was sentenced this week to five years in federal prison after pleading guilty to orchestrating one of the largest fraud schemes ever...
Rural South Dakota 275-foot SBA Communications tower crumples under force of derecho-like storm
Winds exceeding 90 miles per hour swept through Lincoln County, South Dakota, on Monday night, leaving a trail of destruction in their wake. The intense storm, described by emergency officials as containing straight-line winds potentially stronger than some tornadoes,...
Brattle report: Big 3 carriers’ monopsony power squeezes U.S. wireless infrastructure sector’s contractors
A new economic report by The Brattle Group warns of “market failure” in the U.S. wireless infrastructure services industry, citing the outsized buying power of the nation’s three largest wireless carriers. Commissioned by NATE: The Communications Infrastructure Contractors Association,...
Gigapower faces $200 Million lawsuit from Tilson over breach of fiber build deal in Arizona and Nevada
Tilson Technology Management, a national network development and telecom infrastructure services firm, has filed a lawsuit against Gigapower, the AT&T–BlackRock-backed fiber joint venture, seeking over $200 million in damages tied to a large-scale broadband buildout in Nevada and Arizona....
Former contractor accused of burglarizing 35+ cell sites in Arizona; Police, eBay, T-Mobile investigating
A Buckeye, Arizona man with a history of criminal charges has been arrested in connection with a multi-jurisdictional investigation into the theft of hundreds of thousands of dollars in cell tower equipment from multiple carriers across Arizona. According to...
Calvin Sellars, 46, killed in tower fall in Trinity County, Texas; Trace Wireless named in OSHA probe
According to the Trinity County Sheriff’s Office, a tower technician died on July 14, 2025, when he fell from an internet tower at the Whispering Pines golf course near Sebastopol, Texas. In a statement, Sheriff Woody Wallace said that...
Bernard Borghei departs Symphony amid irreconcilable differences, leaves behind a legacy of philanthropy
Bernard Borghei, one of the wireless infrastructure industry’s more visible and well-regarded executives, announced last week that he has stepped down from his role as CEO of Symphony Towers Infrastructure, citing “irreconcilable differences” with the company’s financial sponsor. His...
Crown Castle’s Missouri cell tower outage tied to theft, not terrorism
Two individuals accused of damaging a Kansas City, Missouri cell tower on Monday have been charged with targeting critical infrastructure — but court documents suggest the alleged theft from a 110-foot monopole site on Prospect Ave., owned by Crown Castle, was...
Deepening the digital divide: Pew says cities will gain as rural towns lose in broken broadband rollout
Despite historic federal investments in broadband infrastructure, a new report by The Pew Charitable Trusts warns that the United States may fall short of its universal connectivity goals—not because of insufficient funding, but due to inconsistent, outdated, and incomplete...
PPE carabiner or rigging connector? New video shows why not understanding the difference could be fatal
NATE: The Communications Infrastructure Contractors Association today released a video shining a spotlight on the industry’s utilization of carabiners and quick rigging connectors. The video, the fourth to Debut in Volume 8 of the Association’s popular #ClimberConnection series, was...
Massachusetts cell tower objectors’ 80% chance turns 100% wrong as Greenfield monopole gets green light
After months of heated debate, the Greenfield, MA Zoning Board of Appeals (ZBA) has approved the construction of a 170-foot cell tower by Viridi Wireless on Fairview Street, acting on behalf of AT&T. The decision follows a prolonged review...
Building dreams: Tower Family Foundation supports 40 scholars for 2025–2026
The Tower Family Foundation has announced the recipients of the non-profit organization’s merit-based scholarship program for the 2025-2026 academic year. The Tower Family Foundation scholarship program provides a limited number of merit-based scholarships to employees of NATE member companies...
Domestic terrorism label used as attacks on Charter’s Missouri fiber disrupt 911, hospitals
A disturbing surge in deliberate attacks on the nation’s communications infrastructure is being likened to acts of domestic terrorism, with potentially life-threatening consequences. Charter Communications reported on Monday that its Spectrum network in Missouri has experienced a 200% year-over-year...
Media spotlighted DEI rollback—but buried T-Mobile’s contractor rescue deal brokered by the FCC and NATE
As the FCC greenlit T-Mobile’s acquisitions of U.S. Cellular and Metronet on Friday, most headlines centered on T-Mobile’s abrupt halting of DEI programs—a move widely viewed as a strategic concession to win regulatory favor. However, buried beneath the coverage...
Wisconsin delivers a win to carrier and towerco owners with a tower tax exemption
In a breakthrough shift for the wireless infrastructure industry, Wisconsin has officially enacted legislation that fully exempts telecommunications towers from property taxation, aiming to modernize the state’s tax code in response to an evolving communications landscape. Signed into law...
T-Mobile–NATE landmark agreement targets 1099 abuse, matrix pricing and subcontractor reform
A new agreement between NATE: The Communications Infrastructure Contractors Association and T-Mobile, signed on July 8, promises significant improvements for wireless contractors who have been struggling to maintain a semblance of profitability with current take-it-or-leave-it matrix pricing. Under the...
FCC Chair Carr: Real tower work deserves real wages, not 1099 exploitation by unvetted and foreign crews
FCC Chairman Brendan Carr returned to familiar ground last week in Sioux Falls, South Dakota—both literally and politically—to unveil what he’s calling the “Build America Agenda,” a sweeping deregulatory policy initiative aimed at accelerating infrastructure deployment, restoring U.S. leadership...
From the field to the front office: NWSA survey aims to reflect real-world needs
The National Wireless Safety Alliance (NWSA) is pleased to announce the launch of its 2025 Customer Experience Survey, inviting professionals from across the telecommunications and tower industry to share their feedback on NWSA’s certification process and related services. Responses...