Two of the Land Mobile Communications Council’s 16 members – the Enterprise Wireless Alliance (WEA) and the Wireless Infrastructure Association (WIA) are at odds with each other after a year-long effort has failed to identify a viable approach to arrive at a consensus among the Business/Industrial (BI) and Public Safety (PS) frequency advisory committees (FACs) on how best to process …
FCC issues EAS test report showing improvement and recommendations
In a report released earlier this week, the FCC has spent a half-a-year analyzing what it learned from its nationwide test of the Emergency Alert System on Oct. 3, 2018. The purpose of the test was to assess the reliability and effectiveness of the nation’s alert and warning infrastructure, or the Integrated Public Alert and Warning System (IPAWS), as well …
U.S. tied with China in global 5G race, new report finds
The U.S. is tied for first with China in global 5G readiness, according to a new report from global telecommunications research firm Analysys Mason. Making an influx of spectrum available to America’s wireless industry over the next five years will help secure America’s 5G leadership, add $391 billion to the U.S. economy and create 1.8 million new jobs according to …
With prank videos and articles, industry was also ‘GraviHook’ed on April 1
If April 1 isn’t your spouse’s or a loved one’s birthday or other special date, the day sneaks up on you along with a number of April Fools’ Day articles and videos, oftentimes catching you off guard as Wireless Estimator’s Huawei CFO’s Releasei and Dust Spectrum articles did to over 8,000 viewers yesterday, many of them not catching on until …
FCC to unveil breakthrough technology to replace billion-dollar spectrum bids
The nation’s media was quick to note last week that FCC Commissioners, normally incessantly microblogging their Twitter followers with FCC information and what they believe are cultural consciousness must-reads on every imaginable subject, haven’t tweeted once since last Tuesday. An exclusive report this morning by Emmet T. Witllinger of POLITICO’s Morning Tech uncovered why. The federal agency has been feverishly working on …
Successful NATE UNITE 2019 conference is captured in video
NATE today unveiled a video showcasing the sights and sounds from the successful NATE UNITE 2019 Conference in Grapevine, Texas. The video is the second to debut in Volume 4 of the Association’s popular Climber Connection series. The video provides testimonial interviews with NATE UNITE 2019 attendees and recaps the popular educational sessions, training opportunities, keynote luncheons, vendor displays, social …
Widening student cancer concerns appear to be based upon inaccurate cell site RF test results
When a fourth child was diagnosed with cancer at a San Joaquin County, Calif. elementary school earlier this year, parents championed the need to have a Sprint cell tower removed from the Weston Elementary school campus since it could be causing harm to students. The Ripon Unified School District (RUSD) sent out a letter to parents stating that the RF …
T-Mobile’s filing disappears as FCC resets merger clock to review it
UPDATE: March 8, 2019 – The T-Mobile filing that caused the FCC to extend its time for the review of the T-Mobile/Sprint merger became publicly available again at approximately 3:00 p.m. today after visitors received a confusing ‘Access Denied” message for at least nine hours when clicking on news reports’ links as well as a link in a blog from T-Mobile CEO …
Free Press: FCC broadband gains overstated leads Fast Forward Friday news
Article Media Free Press: FCC broadband gains overstated B+C Huawei sues U.S. as ‘last resort’ to fight government ban UPI Was a cell tower illegally built in an Atlanta neighborhood AJC South Korea delays commercial 5G service over phone and carrier issues VB AT&T expects to hit second FirstNet buildout Milestone by year-end Missiona Critical Interoperability debate dominates carrier-selection panel …
Blue sky wireless workforce shortage projections aren’t grounded with reliable data
No stranger to manlifts, climbing cell sites, and even ascending a 2,000-foot tower, FCC Commissioner Brendan Carr joined a Vinculums crew on Wednesday to troubleshoot a cell site along a highway outside of San Jose, Calif. According to Carr, the problem turned out to be a bad connector on a sector’s transmission line. The Vinculums team, with Carr’s assistance, had it …
Windstream’s distress funding, reorganization keeps Uniti from closing its doors
UPDATE: February 28, 2019 – Uniti Group Inc. was expected to release its fourth quarter and year end 2018 results after the close of trading today, but announced that it is postponing them to no later than March 18, 2019 so that it can continue to assess the impact of the bankruptcy petition by Windstream Holdings, Inc. February 27, 2019 …
FAA obstruction lighting letter sheds light on requirement for sole source replacement parts
UPDATE February 25, 2019 — An ambiguous July 27, 2018 FAA letter from Khalil E. Kodsi, Manager, Airport Engineering Division, that could be construed to imply that tower obstruction lighting systems could only use original equipment manufacturer (OEM) replacement parts created confusion and industry-wide concern as reported by Wireless Estimator, below. Addressing the matter seven months later, in a letter …
3,511 broadcast stations added in the past decade as AM continues its decline
According to the FCC’s most current broadcast stations statistics, the nation saw an addition of 3,511 broadcast stations added to its ranks during the past 10 years, with the total number of commercially licensed UHF stations seeing a gain of 210 as VHF commercial stations saw a loss of 215. In addition, there are 167 fewer AM radio stations, but FM stations …
Women of NATE leaders featured in the latest FCC podcast
With the broadcast repack in full swing and the race to 5G heating up, tower work is essential to getting those efforts across the finish line. Demand for tower crews is sky high—whether it’s working a 50-foot cell tower or a 2,000-foot broadcast tower. And it’s easy to take for granted when our cell phones and televisions work, but it’s …
Former broadband advisory head and Quintillion CEO, pleads guilty to bilking investors of $250 million
Elizabeth Ann Pierce, the former CEO of telecommunications company Quintillion based in Anchorage, Alaska, and FCC Chairman Ajit Pai’s pick to head the FCC’s Broadband Deployment Advisory Committee, pled guilty Monday in Manhattan federal court to wire fraud and aggravated identity theft in connection with a scheme to use forged guaranteed revenue contracts fraudulently to induce investors to pony up more …
As the nation’s robo cops, the FCC moves forward with plans to end spoofed calls
The FCC today released an extensive report on the robocall problem in America, a key concern of consumers. “No consumer wants to be bombarded by spoofed robocalls—they’re a waste of time at best and a scam at worst,” said FCC Chairman Ajit Pai. “As this report makes clear, we’re steadfastly focused on addressing this serious problem. “There’s no easy or single answer, …
ExteNet sues Crown and NY DOT over shot clock violation, wants Crown’s contract revoked
In a be careful what you wish for reality incident, a subsidiary of Crown Castle is being sued for violating an FCC’s shot clock deadline as set forth by Congress in the Telecommunications Act of 1996, an action that carriers, Crown Castle and other vertical realtors petitioned the FCC to adopt. ExteNet Systems, Inc. filed its complaint on Monday against …
FCC admits to and fixes ASR flaw that allowed 40-plus illegal tower ownership changes
The FCC will enact a new procedure for reporting tower ownership changes in their Antenna Structure Registration System (ASR) on Feb. 14, 2019 to reduce the risk of unauthorized changes being made. The new process was propelled after the FCC found, as reported exclusively by Wireless Estimator, that in early 2016, a Wisconsin wireless contractor discovered a flaw in the ASR …
Commissioner Carr ‘preaches to the choir’ at NATE UNITE 2019 keynote address
During his keynote address about 5G at NATE UNITE 2019, FCC Commissioner Brendan Carr said he felt like he was “preaching to the choir” since no group knows more about those topics than the National Association of Tower Erectors. “The work that tower crews do every day — from building new cell sites to maintaining 2,000 foot towers — is not easy. And that’s particularly true …
Fifth FCC Commissioner Starks is off and running with his first five staffers
Newly sworn-in FCC Commissioner Geoffrey Starks, who made his first public appearance at yesterday’s brief open meeting, announced his first five staff members, all of whom are serving in acting capacities. “I am deeply honored to serve as a Commissioner of the Federal Communications Commission, and I thank the President and the United States Senate for this exceptional privilege. As …
