Tomorrow, Pittsfield, Massachusetts Board of Health (BoH) officials will ask the City Council to back up their cease-and-desist order against Verizon Wireless to discontinue their use of a cell tower at 877 South Street, requesting $84,000 in legal fees for two outside attorneys, although some members believe their attempt will be futile. The BoH issued an emergency order on April …
FCC ensnares Putin ally Abramovich in Truphone’s $660,639 fine for not disclosing his investments
The FCC has proposed a fine of $660,639 for London-based Truphone, the owner of iSmart Mobile, for exceeding the statutory limits of 25% for ownership by foreign individuals or entities tied to FCC licenses without FCC approval. FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel said the Commission in the wake of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine “launched an internal assessment of Russian ownership of …
Biden’s ‘USA only’ steel mandate seen by tower and mount manufacturers as surmountable
On Monday, the Biden Administration issued guidance relating to the “Buy America” sourcing requirements under the “Build America, Buy America” portion of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act that will provide $65 billion in funding to build out America’s broadband. The requirements in the Buy America Preference guidance, in part, states: “All iron and steel used in the project are …
QualTek tower climbers file for CWA union representation as the industry closely monitors the outcome
QualTek tower technicians in the company’s Nevada office have filed a petition with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) for a union election for admittance to the Communications Workers of America (CWA) union. The news was announced on CWA’s Facebook page on Friday, stating: “Breaking! Tower climbers at QualTek in Las Vegas just filed for their election to join CWA! …
FCC sets out the nation’s new guidelines for obtaining accurate broadband map data
The need for accurate data pinpointing where broadband service is available and where it is lacking, has never been more important, the FCC said on Thursday when it provided details to state, local and tribal entities with guidance on submitting broadband coverage data as the agency goes full-throttle to develop new maps of high-speed service across the nation. The FCC …
Raising the Barr for above and beyond customer service, especially when lives are at stake, is ASK’s mission
To gain and keep loyal customers, successful companies go above and beyond with customer service and support. Pat Barr, who humbly entitles himself as Albuquerque, NM-based ASK Tower Supply’s technical specialist, takes that to a higher level, and in the process, is most likely saving lives of emergency services personnel and those individuals who they safely return to their loved …
SPX announces acquisition of International Tower Lighting
SPX Corporation (“SPX”) announced today that it has completed the acquisition of International Tower Lighting, LLC (“ITL”), a private company headquartered in La Vergne, Tennessee. ITL is a leader in the design and manufacture of highly-engineered Aids-to-Navigation, or “AtoN” systems, including obstruction lighting for telecommunications towers, wind turbines and numerous other structures. ITL also hosts monitoring and support services for …
To Russia with no love, Ericsson suspends all business with the country over unprovoked Ukraine war
Swedish network equipment maker Ericsson is suspending its business in Russia indefinitely and has put employees on paid leave. This comes six weeks after the Swedish telecom equipment maker started a review of the impact of Western sanctions on its operations in Russia and suspended all deliveries to customers in Russia. The company said today it would record a $95 …
Lawsuit by deceased climber’s parents says tower wasn’t secured, but photos argue against the complaint
After a 21-year-old Sevier County, TN man fell to his death last May after climbing a tower atop Bluff Mountain, his parents have filed a lawsuit against the county, saying it didn’t do enough to keep people away from climbing the self-supporting tower. Allen J. Morton III fell from a tower on Green Top Road on May 26, 2021. The …
Subcontractor’s ‘shoddy concrete’ work proves to be costly for Crown Castle in Baltimore
The Baltimore, MD City Office of the Inspector General (OIG) announced last Wednesday that the City’s Department of Transportation (DoT) has fined Crown Castle [NG Atlantic] Fiber LLC (Crown Castle) $447,000 after the OIG found that 450 small cell sites Crown built were not constructed in accordance with asphalt and concrete code requirements. The OIG’s office began investigating last year …
Appeals court won’t revive Martha’s Vineyard AT&T cell tower lawsuit
Fears about radio frequency emissions affecting a Martha’s Vineyard man’s medical equipment and property value weren’t enough to allow a husband and wife standing to sue over the previous construction of an AT&T cell tower on the island, a Commonwealth of Massachusetts appeals court ruled yesterday. Appellants Dana and Robert Strayton, who live on the island in Edgartown, filed a …
Lynk successfully deploys world’s first commercial-ready cell tower in space with service later this year
Lynk Global, Inc., a leading satellite-direct-to-phone telecoms company based in Falls Church, Virginia, today announced the successful April 1, 2022 launch, deployment, and initial on-orbit check-out of Lynk Tower 1. The spacecraft is the company’s sixth ‘cell-tower-in-space’ satellite and is now in position to become the world’s first commercial cell-tower-in-space, according to a press statement. Lynk Tower 1 is the first satellite …
After jury whittles $20 million request down to $525K; plaintiff wants a new trial on FCC license snafu
A Georgia broadcaster was awarded $520,000 in damages on February 16 following a trial on its claim that an outside attorney botched its federal license application for a Class A low power television station statement of eligibility. The malpractice award stemmed from an incomplete application that would have been acceptable to the FCC if four boxes were checked. However, The …
Massachusetts high court rules police must get a judge’s warrant before running tower dumps
The Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court authorized some broad police searches of cell-phone location data Friday, but also set limits on police activity to control mass surveillance and intrusions against innocent people’s privacy. The case arose from seven tower dumps that were obtained covering areas around six robberies including one that resulted in the death of a Boston store clerk in …
North Carolina ring of cell site copper thieves arrested after lengthy investigation
The Buncombe County North Carolina Sheriff’s Office has charged 12 people in a cell site transmission line copper theft ring after a lengthy investigation, authorities said on March 30. The damage was estimated to be worth $331,000. Buncombe County detectives as well as the McDowell County and Mitchell County Sheriff’s offices worked for weeks to investigate and arrest the suspects, a press …
Nationwide strike of contractors averted after carriers and towercos agree to meaningful concessions
An organized work stoppage action by U.S. wireless contractors that could have exceeded the breadth of economic damage caused by the steel workers strike of 1919, that shut down the nation’s steel industry, was averted yesterday after carriers and tower owners offered concessions to offset untenable matrix pricing being offered for 5G installations. The call to action for a national …
U.S. towerco is bid up in down under 2,000 tower deal that went to ATN and Singtel for $2.7 billion
UPDATE – April 1, 2022: Macquarie Asset Management today announced that, alongside its coinvestors, it has entered into binding agreements with Australia Tower Network (ATN), owned by AustralianSuper and Singtel, for the sale of 100% of Axicom for $2.7 billion (US). Earlier reports said that the assets, formerly Crown Castle’s towers, were expected to fetch approximately $2.1 billion US. American …
House FCC oversight hearing focuses on broadband maps, security
FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel informed members of a House Energy and Commerce Committee Oversight hearing today that the improved broadband maps needed to adequately disburse billions of federal infrastructure dollars will come this fall. However the maps will still have to be released to the states for their input on accuracy, and the FCC will then do any applicable revisions …
Think tank researcher identifies U.S. mobile wireless speeds are among the best in the world
A constant refrain often heard in the broadband debate is that Internet speeds in the United States are generally far slower than for most other advanced countries. To test that argument, last February the Phoenix Center released a paper entitled Comparative Analysis of Fixed Broadband Speeds in Cities Across the World in which their Chief Economist Dr. George S. Ford compared …
MasTec, SBA and DigitalBridge announce new leadership roles
Ava L. Parker – MasTec Ava L. Parker has become a member of MasTec’s board of directors, according to a company press release. She joined the board as a Class III director in MasTec’s staggered board structure, MasTec said. “Parker serves as president of Palm Beach State College in Palm Beach County, one of Florida’s largest higher education institutions,” MasTec said. …
