Four lawsuits that were filed in June against a tower owner and the contractor it hired to design and manage a structural reinforcement project in West Va. where two tower technicians died and two were injured after a tower collapsed, have worked their way from circuit court to federal court, and the defendants are alleging that it was the tower …
Indiana’s tallest building picks Subcarrier Communications to manage its rooftop assets
Subcarrier Communications has been selected to provide rooftop management services for the Chase Tower in Indianapolis, Ind., expanding their building rooftop management portfolio. The team leaders for this transaction were Operations Manager Greg Weger, and VP of Engineering Bill Cordell from Subcarrier’s Houston Office. The iconic Monument Circle building opened in 1990. At 830 feet, it’s the 47thth tallest building …
NWSA introduces Rigger and Signalperson certification programs
The National Wireless Safety Alliance (NWSA) announced today the official introduction to the wireless industry of CCO Rigger and Signalperson Certification programs. The programs have the distinction of becoming the first two assessment and certification offerings available to the wireless industry’s workforce through the NWSA. Training and certification, when done correctly, have been shown to improve productivity, reduce accidents, save …
Court tosses tech’s appeal that his RF burns were the fault of prime contractor
A California Court of Appeal in Sacramento has ruled that a tower technician who was injured while doing site audits for AT&T cannot sue the company that subcontracted work to his employer since he was not working for them, and because the primary contractor only trained the subcontractor on how to properly fill out paperwork, and it did not retain …
New York subway system’s DAS expansion welcomed in troubling times
With New York City going to high alert in response to the release of a new ISIS video that sets Times Square in the terror group’s bombing or chemical-warfare sight, New York Governor Andrew M. Cuomo’s announcement last Thursday that the Metropolitan Transportation Authority and Transit Wireless have launched the Phase 4 expansion of wireless, public safety and Wi-Fi services …
CTI jumps back into tower ownership with a 120 structure deal with Vyve Broadband
Massachusetts-based CTI Towers, Inc., a wireless tower operating company in which Comcast Ventures is majority owner, has jumped back into the tower space following their announcement today that it has acquired 120 communication towers from Vyve Broadband, a Rye Brook, N.Y.-headquartered mid-sized MSO with towers in Okla., Kan., Ark., and Wyo. The deal, expected to close by year-end, will provide …
FCC hits two carriers with $85,000 in fines for RF exposure rooftop violations in Arizona
Two carriers were cited by the Federal Communications Commission’s Enforcement Bureau for similar violations for failing to comply with the FCC’s radio frequency exposure limits after the owner of a building at 4040 E. McDowell Rd., Phoenix, Ariz. complained to enforcement agents that his building staff have difficulty gaining RF exposure safety assistance from the carriers that use his rooftop. …
Future 5G networks to open up opportunities for new industries and verticals
The latest edition of the Ericsson Mobility Report provides insight into the future of 5G networks, including a forecast of 150 million 5G mobile subscriptions by 2021. The US, Canada, South Korea, Japan, and China are predicted to lead with the first, and fastest, 5G subscription uptake. 5G will connect new types of devices, enabling new use cases related to …
FCC chief says his agency is allowing a flexible repacking deadline
At yesterday’s House Communications Subcommittee’s Federal Communications Commission oversight hearing, FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler, along with his fellow commissioners, said that the FCC would not force broadcasters off the air who missed the 39-month repacking deadline for moving to new channels. Wheeler said that the deadline was not a “drop off the edge of the table” situation, since there was …
Digital Bridge and Stonepeak complete ExteNet Systems’ $1.4 billion recapitalization
ExteNet Systems, Inc., a leading independent provider of distributed networks enabling outdoor and indoor wireless connectivity, announced the successful completion of its recapitalization efforts, initially announced in July. The acquisition is led by Digital Bridge Holdings (Digital Bridge) and Stonepeak Infrastructure Partners (Stonepeak), which together head the consortium that invested or arranged over $1.4 billion capital, inclusive of equity and …
Three people are rescued safely, but one still needs assistance
At about 1:00 p.m. yesterday, Tooele County, Utah and Marion County, Oregon emergency services were called into action to save three people who needed their assistance at two tower sites. One weather-related incident could have been avoided, the other event was an unpredictable action taken by a teen that thought her only option to end her unsolvable problems was suicide. …
Nation mourns the passing of Connie Durcsak who moved wireless forward
Utilities Telecom Council President and CEO Connie Durcsak, 50, passed away unexpectedly on Nov. 14, and heartfelt tributes to the truly visionary leader from colleagues and friends are providing a glimpse of the many challenges and opportunities that she tackled head on, always going beyond the norm to expand the reach of the wireless industry. Durcsak earned her Master’s degree …
Phoenix Tower International closes its 600 T-Mobile tower buy
Phoenix Tower International (PTI) announces that it has closed its transaction with T-Mobile to acquire the ownership or management rights relating to over 600 wireless communication tower sites including the exclusive right to manage and operate the sites from T-Mobile. Terms of the transaction remain confidential between the parties. TD Securities LLC served as M&A Advisor to PTI and provided …
AT&T offers $7,500 reward to catch those who felled a Texas guyed tower
AT&T is offering a reward of up to $7,500 for information leading to the arrest and conviction of those involved in the destruction of the carrier’s tower located at 1901 W. Crawford in Denison, Tex. on Nov. 12, 2015, according to the Denison Police Department. According to authorities, the destruction of this tower affected cell service for AT&T, Sprint, and …
Half of husband and wife battery theft team given a two year sentence in Ohio
Rachel Cowan, 34, who was her husband Michael’s lookout as he stole backup batteries from tower sites, received a two year jail sentence today in Hamilton County, Ohio after she pleaded guilty in September to charges of breaking and entering, theft and disrupting public services. Michael Cowan, whose case is still pending, would use codes that he acquired through his …
Mobilitie and Digital Bridge vie for ‘largest’ infrastructure bragging rights
Mobilitie LLC, announced it has closed a $325 million debt investment. Led by CIT Bank, N.A., and TD Securities (USA), LLC, the investment will continue to fuel the exponential growth of the company’s distributed antenna systems, small cell, communication tower and Wi-Fi business investments. The Newport Beach, California-based company took the opportunity in its press release last week to state …
Telemundo’s WNJU tops the list at $900 million in FCC’s new repacking auction prices
The FCC has adjusted repacking opening bid prices for TV stations in the reverse auction, with Telemundo’s WNJU New York having the highest bid price at $900 million, with WCBS coming in second at $889 million. The changes do not impact the start date of the auction, which begins March 29, 2015. In order for broadcasters to have 60 days …
Trump Tower’s not-so-swaying broadcast antenna results in a $2,000 fine to developer
On Aug. 31 and Sept. 1, 2015, Toronto, Canada building authorities closed off an area of the city’s financial district after they received reports of an ‘unstable’ antenna on the Trump Tower. On Friday, the developer of Trump Tower, Talon International Development Inc., was handed a $2,000 bill from the city for the cost of closing off the roads around …
Consider saving your new carrier drooling for another opportunity
Get ready for two Un-carrier cursing contests Commentary – The industry salivated a stream of anticipated earnings in 2010 when LightSquared announced its ambitious plans to develop a wholesale national broadband network. Two years later it dried up when the company filed for bankruptcy after the FCC kayoed their plans due to what they believed would be significant GPS interference …
Court rules that AT&T will stand trial in tower injury lawsuit along with other defendants
AT&T, Inc. was denied its request last week to be removed from a personal injury lawsuit brought by Thomas Jeglum, 26, against the company in the First Judicial District of Pennsylvania after the California tower tech suffered serious injuries when he fell in 2013 from a stealth tower site in Allentown, Pa. while performing an AT&T Mobility LTE upgrade. Judge John M. …
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