In discussing AT&T’s deal to acquire Time Warner for $85 billion, AT&T CEO Randall Stephenson said in a conference call yesterday morning, “We’re convinced this combination of Time Warner and AT&T is a perfect match for both companies.” In a canned statement, Stephenson said, “We intend to give customers unmatched choice, quality, value and experiences that will define the future …
AT&T and Verizon lead nation in 2015 capex, but tightened it in 2016
According to recent data from the Progressive Policy Institute, AT&T and Verizon outspent every other non-financial company in the nation in domestic capital expenditures in 2015. AT&T totaled $18.7 billion versus Verizon’s $16.5 billion. Noticeably absent from the bottom of the top 25 list were T-Mobile and Sprint, with Freeport-McMoRan at $3.4 billion, just behind General Electric at $3.5 billion. …
AT&T’s veiled tower lease ‘threats’ surface again with new onerous requirements
According to a number of news reports that republished information from an article by Fierce Wireless, AT&T is in a full-court press to force tower owners to take new restrictive terms or the carrier might relocate to an alternative site. The articles state that the push to lower rates dovetails with AT&T’s SVP of wireless network design Tom Keathley’s August …
AT&T plans to give towers and fiber competition with plastic antennas using the power grid
Towers and fiber may have a serious competitor if AT&T’s Project AirGig is successful in spreading internet service wirelessly through the country’s power grid, with the company believing, “where there are power lines, there can be broadband”. AT&T said its transformative technology from AT&T labs allows for affordable antenna units to be able to redistribute wireless and wireless signals around …
Pittsburg communications confab focused upon industry safety issues
Safety officials from carriers, tower owners, regulators and training companies converged in Pittsburg, Pa. last week at the 2016 Environmental, Health & Safety Communications Panel (EHSCP) symposium hosted this year by Crown Castle. A wide variety of topics related directly to the communications industry were presenting during the well-attended sessions. A panel discussion on the upcoming Washington State Standard, was …
American Tower’s chief says pressures to lower their tenant rates aren’t working
During American Tower Corporation’s second quarter earnings analysts’ call yesterday, President and CEO James Taiclet fielded questions regarding whether the company might need to reduce its carriers’ tenancy rates. Taiclet said, no. Answering Barclays analyst Amir Rozwadowski’s question regarding concerns about future lease escalator rates, with some carriers expressing “some consternation about how the compounding growth outlook of that cost …
The sky doesn’t appear to be ready to fall upon tower company stocks anytime soon
Almost four months ago, a well-respected telecom financial analyst downgraded the public tower companies, later citing that she believed that a couple of the major carriers may be trying to bypass the major towercos – or at least presenting that posture so that they could control rising rent escalators. In a March 4 statement, Wells Fargo senior analyst Jennifer Fritzsche …
FCC’s new sweeping Spectrum Frontier rules will open up 11 GHz of spectrum
The FCC today adopted new rules for wireless broadband operations in frequencies above 24 GHz, making the United States the first country in the world to make this spectrum available for next generation wireless services. Building on the successful, flexible approach to spectrum policy that enabled the explosion of 4G (LTE), these rules set a strong foundation for the rapid …
As AT&T experiments with flying COWs they’re currently inspecting towers with drones
By John Donovan Chief Strategy Officer and Group President – AT&T Technology and Operations Imagine you’re at a concert watching your favorite band, and out of the corner of your eye you notice a tethered drone hovering nearby. But this drone isn’t taking photos or videos of the band. It’s temporarily providing enhanced LTE wireless coverage at the packed venue …
A deceased Alabama tower technician’s family is struggling to bring him home
An Alabama tower technician was killed Saturday when the company vehicle he was a passenger in crashed into another vehicle that was towing a semi-trailer on I-10 in Hudspeth County, Tex. Adding to the tragedy, his family doesn’t have the funds to bring him home. Department of Public Safety officials said that 37-year-old Kenny Roach was driving on I-10 West …
Dycom picks up Goodman Networks assets for $107.5 million
Dycom Industries, Inc. and Goodman Networks Incorporated have announced that they have entered into an agreement that will have Dycom acquiring certain assets from Goodman used in their current wireless network deployment and wireline businesses for approximately $107.5 million in cash. Both companies informed Wireless Estimator that they would not be identifying what those assets are, other than that the acquired …
OSHA is readying new RF, fall protection and hoist standards
Although the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) had known that fall protection in the wireless construction industry has either been used improperly or inconsistently due to the high fatality rate of tower climbers, after analyzing the responses to their 38 questions on tower safety published last April, the agency has decided that it will be moving forward with revising their standards …
From Whoop! to knots, task force moves forward with tower tech certification development
The National Wireless Safety Alliance (NWSA) convened 35 industry leading subject matter experts this week to continue the assessment and certification development process for the Telecommunications Tower Technician I (TTTI) and Telecommunications Tower Technician II (TTTII) programs. The intensive NWSA task force meetings occurred over a three-day period and were hosted by AT&T at the AT&T Center for Learning in …
Eyes are on Sprint as T-Mobile, AT&T and Verizon provide favorable capex reports
Although subscriber growth is a good indicator of a carrier’s favorable outlook by analysts, capex is the tailwind of wireless infrastructure providers, and this week’s news deflated the sails of a number of analysts who have speculated that carriers would cut their capex in early 2016. In his typical over the top presentation with a 360-degree camera, T-Mobile CEO John …
Carriers agree upon network resiliency framework for disasters and emergencies
Carriers today said they’re in agreement on how to facilitate information-sharing in an effort to improve network resiliency before, during and after natural disasters and emergencies. House Energy and Commerce Committee ranking member Frank Pallone and CTIA the Wireless Association released the “Wireless Network Resiliency Cooperative Framework” with the backing of AT&T Inc., Sprint Corp., T-Mobile, U.S. Cellular and Verizon …
Execs from HBO, AT&T and T-Mobile top speakers’ list at 2016 Wireless Infrastructure Show
PCIA – The Wireless Infrastructure Association has announced that the 2016 Wireless Infrastructure Show in Dallas May 23-26 will feature keynote speeches from a dynamic group of thought leaders from the converging worlds of technology, telecommunications and entertainment. The show, which will take place at the Hilton Anatole in Dallas, attracts more than 3,000 leaders and innovators from across the …
Acceptance of drones in wireless work could begin with early broadcast ‘repacking’ efforts
In 2013, when Amazon unveiled its daring drone plan to have unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) provide commercial deliveries, Black & Veatch had already been investigating how drones could assist in reducing the number of times climbers would have to ascend a tower. At an FCC-OSHA workshop in 2014, John Johnson, Black & Veatch Vice President, ESH&S, said, “I know that …
Tower tech’s condition still critical after a safety climb failure in Texas; his rescuers are sacked
UPDATE: – April 21, 2016 – According to Troy White’s father, Mick Whitecotton, White is scheduled to undergo surgery on his left leg today. It was severely cut as the tower tech slid down a guy wire. Whitecotton said White was still in the trauma center intubated with a brace on his back. Nurses were able to allow him to stand …
FAA to consider report on drones typically used by carriers and contractors
The final Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) Aviation Rule-Making Committee (ARC) report was released to the public yesterday and will assist the telecommunications industry if the group’s recommendations on drones are accepted by the FAA. The Senate is seeking to create regulations for larger drones that could do commercial deliveries. The FAA Administrator, DOT Secretary, White House and Congress staffers have been briefed on the …
FCC auction has kicked off with NAB and NATE still ticked off
The Federal Communications Commission’s (FCC) auction to buy spectrum from television stations, repack the spectrum, and then sell it to wireless providers, kicked off yesterday with broadcasters having to make a commitment as to whether and how they would participate. But a 39-month post auction deadline is seen as too compressed by the National Association of Broadcasters (NAB). And the …
