Trade groups representing internet service providers sued the state of New York on Friday, alleging that a new mandate requiring ISPs to offer low-income internet plans capped at $15 each signed two weeks ago oversteps the state’s regulation authority. The lawsuit was filed by industry associations including the New York State Telecommunications Association, CTIA- The Wireless Association, ACA Connects – …
Ericsson launches three-sector radio for efficient site upgrades and capacity boost
Ericsson is launching Radio 6626, a unique three-sector dual-band radio to help communications service providers (CSPs) increase their Frequency Division Duplex (FDD) 5G frequency capacity, even as their site towers already have 2G, 3G and 4G radios. The latest addition to Ericsson’s radio portfolio provides multi-standard and multi-band coverage while lowering costs and reducing footprint – up to 50 percent …
New construction cut out of FCC’s proposed $7.17 billion student broadband program
Acting FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel on Friday laid out the proposed rules for the Emergency Connectivity fund that excludes new network construction from a $7.17 billion program meant to help students get and stay online as the coronavirus pandemic drags on, planning to limit purchases to laptops, tablets and Wi-Fi hot spots. New phones were also excluded in the fund …
Arc flash test failure has Miller/Honeywell issuing mandatory stop use of harness 850KQC/S/MBK
Honeywell issued the following Warning – Mandatory Stop Use of Miller/Honeywell Harness At Honeywell, our mission is to be the global leader in personal protective equipment with innovative solutions that protect and save lives. In line with our commitment to our mission statement, we are writing to inform you that Harness 850KQC/S/MBK failed an Arc Flash ASTM F887 test that is part …
President Biden’s prime-time joint address to Congress provided little time for broadband
If you didn’t have an additional 70 minutes to spare last evening to watch President Biden’s fist-bumping prime-time joint address to Congress to discover how his leadership and administration’s actions will alter the industry, it can be summed up in one sentence: The internet was a science breakthrough, America needs high speed internet, wind turbine blades should be built in …
Tower Family Foundation touts a successful launch of its 2021 fundraising campaign to aid industry workers
Companies and individuals have welcomed the opportunity to offer support to the Foundation that assists industry workers and their families in their time of need The Tower Family Foundation, a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization, today announced the 2021, first quarter donors and pledges. Thanks to the philanthropic contributions received from industry stakeholders, over $263,000 was raised in Quarter 1. The Foundation’s Endowment Committee, …
New Mexico expected to fund blimp broadband study for rural internet
Alphabet Inc.’s Project Loon’s stratosphere balloons received a kick start in 2017 when the company was selected to assist Puerto Rico in providing internet service after Hurricane Maria devastated the island’s cell phone service. However, four years later Alphabet shut down Loon after determining the business is not commercially viable and they couldn’t “get the costs low enough to build …
Senate Commerce Committee passes Telecommunications Skilled Workforce Act
The U.S. Senate Commerce Committee passed the Telecommunications Skilled Workforce Act today, legislation to address the shortage of trained workers necessary to fill next-generation jobs in the telecommunications industry in communities through the country. The Bill, S. 163, introduced by Senators John Thune (R-SD), Jon Tester (D-MT), Roger Wicker (R-MS), Jerry Moran (R-KS) and Gary Peters (D-MI) heads to the full …
Lower satellites will provide SpaceX with higher broadband reach thanks to the FCC
The FCC on Tuesday voted to approve a SpaceX plan to deploy some Starlink satellites at a lower earth orbit than planned as part of its push to offer space-based broadband internet. Elon Musk’s SpaceX had asked the FCC for approval to fly 2,824 satellites at a lower orbit as part of the plan to provide high-speed broadband internet services …
Police err on the side of caution in investigating SBA cell tower power failure in NY
WKTV of Utica, New York broke the story Sunday morning that was picked up by area and industry media that police were investigating damage to a cell phone tower on Mohawk Valley Community College property, causing an event that was taking place on campus to be moved to another location. One report stated that the tower was set on fire. …
Former FCC Chair Pai joins private equity firm Searchlight as its TMT rainmaker
Searchlight Capital Partners, L.P. (Searchlight), a leading global private investment firm, announced the appointment of Ajit Pai, former Chairman of the Federal Communications Commission as its 13th partner and a prospective board member of a number of Searchlight’s existing investments in the technology, media, and telecommunications (TMT) sectors. Searchlight’s U.S.-based TMT investment companies include Consolidated Communications, Global Eagle, Hemisphere Media …
FCC knows the check won’t be in the mail after fining Tele Circuit $4.1M for cramming and slamming
The Federal Communications Commission has fined Norcross, GA-based Tele Circuit Network Corporation $4,145,000 for switching consumers from their preferred carrier to Tele Circuit without permission and adding unauthorized charges to consumers’ bills. Their actions specifically harmed elderly and infirm consumers who, in some cases, were left without telephone service for extended periods while the company refused to reinstate service until …
Dish enlists Amazon to help build its 5G network, to launch in Las Vegas
Amazon Web Services, Inc. (AWS) has announced that DISH Network Corporation (DISH) selected AWS as its preferred cloud provider and will construct its 5G network on AWS, part of a strategic collaboration agreement under which both companies will work to transform how organizations and customers, including AWS and Amazon, order and consume 5G services or create their own private 5G networks. DISH is deploying …
Terra Towers’ lawsuit against Torrecom alleges Peppertree and Goldman conspiracy
Majority shareholders of the telecommunications infrastructure firm Continental Towers LATAM Holdings Limited have filed a lawsuit against the Weston, FL-based company Torrecom Partners, LLC. The complaint alleges a conspiracy in coordination with Continental’s minority shareholders, Goldman Sachs and Peppertree Capital Management, to depress the company’s value and force a merger that would enable Continental’s minority shareholders to squeeze its majority …
FBI shelling out $5,000 reward for info about sabotage of Texas communications towers
The Dallas Division of the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Wichita Falls Police Department are asking for the public’s assistance in identifying the individual(s) responsible for the damage caused to two communications towers in Wichita Falls, Texas. The FBI is offering a reward of up to $5,000 for information leading to the identification, arrest and conviction of the individual …
Long Island town believes it has the right to deny applications for nodes with ugly antennas
The Town of Hempstead in Long Island, NY, last week aggressively replied to a summary judgment bid from Crown Castle that accused Hempstead of unfairly blocking the towerco from building 48 DAS nodes. In their response, Hempstead said that on January 18, 2017, Crown Castle submitted applications for the first 14 of 48 DAS nodes in the town’s right-of-way. The …
T-Mobile disses Dish’s 3G CDMA ‘misinformation campaign’ regarding its 9 million Boost customers
T-Mobile USA Inc. is sparring with Dish Network Corp. over Dish’s claim that it’s trying to “prematurely” kick Boost Mobile subscribers off Sprint’s 3G CDMA Network. In an FCC filing Sunday to Acting Chairman Jessica Rosenworcel, T-Mobile said that the real problem is that Dish hasn’t done adequate preparation to transition existing customers to the newer T-Mobile networks under a …
Everything old is new again. Tesla’s 1901 wireless power is fine tuned and being suggested for 5G IoT
A research team from Georgia Institute of Technology has announced that they have developed a 3D-printed rectifying antenna the size of a playing card that can harvest electromagnetic energy from 5G signals and use it to power devices, saving billions of batteries in the process. Millimeter-wave energy harvesting has been possible for some time, says the team’s authors, Aline Eid, …
Verizon signs C-band deals with Crown Castle and SBA Communications
Verizon inked deals with Crown Castle and SBA Communications, two vertical realtors already hosting Verizon infrastructure equipment, to speed deployment of C-band equipment in preparation for the launch of 5G Ultra Wideband and fixed wireless broadband service on this newly acquired spectrum. Verizon secured an average of 161 MHz of C-band spectrum nationwide in the recent FCC auction, which will allow Verizon to …
Pittsburgh is ‘illegally’ pocketing $580 on street light small cell fees says AT&T in a lawsuit
AT&T is suing the City of Pittsburgh for allegedly failing to meet the FCC’s shot clock requirements and for asking excessive fees for new cell structures in the city’s rights-of-way. The carrier states that the fees and delays for installing small-cell network equipment along city roadways have prevented AT&T from providing service to the area and violates the federal Telecommunications …
