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 …
T-Mobile accusations rebutted as city leaders’ group joins anti-merger movement
T-Mobile has informed the FCC that the Rural Wireless Association (RWA) has been falsely accusing the carrier of falsifying its 4G coverage maps and is not following the procedures the FCC adopted for challenging areas ineligible for Mobility Fund Phase ll funding. In correspondence to the FCC, T-Mobile said that the RWA “did not follow the rules for submitting a challenge …
Contractor survey uncovers some startling financial statistics that could trigger a 5G train wreck
In their drive to lower capex as they roll out 5G, carriers have created a troubling national Achille’s heel – a contractor base that has many companies swimming in debt with serious cash flow problems, according to results of an extensive nationwide survey taken by Wireless Estimator. The wireless contractor survey that was completed last quarter by 263 vetted companies, clearly indicates that …
Comments on contractor roadblocks set up by carriers that will derail America’s 5G race
Deeply concerned about the unsustainable state of wireless contracting, company executives provided 328 optional comments in Wireless Estimator’s extensive survey that was unveiled today. Armed with anonymity, it’s not possible to verify the accuracy of their statements. But it’s clear that their comments, in most cases, were well-thought-out summaries of the difficulties they are facing as carrier capex cuts, extended …
Three carriers give three Pinocchios to AT&T for its false ‘5G E’ claims
In a statement Monday, Verizon, the nation’s largest mobile carrier called upon carriers to not use the term 5G for services until they use actual 5G hardware and radio standards. It was obvious that it was directed towards AT&T whose recent over the air upgrade displayed a “5G E” logo on certain Android devices in lieu of the standard LTE …
T-Mobile says they didn’t lie about their 4G LTE coverage, and possibly underestimated it
T-Mobile has emphatically denied an allegation by the Rural Wireless Association (RWA) in an FCC filing on Dec. 10, 2018 that it lied about the extent of its 4G LTE coverage. RWA said they were concerned about overstated coverage by Verizon and T-Mobile that have been borne out by challenge process data. “The vast majority of test points showed non-qualifying …
Deaths, cancer concerns attributed to AT&T cell site are unfounded leads Fast-Forward-Friday
Article Media Deaths, cancer concerns attributed to AT&T cell site are unfounded Sonoma West Times FCC committtee proposes tax on websites to pay for rural broadband ARS Technica CWA, Dish, NTCA, part of new colaition opposing Sprint/T-Mobile Deal ECN AT&T: Ten predictions for the next 25 year WIA Verizon to buy out more than 10,000 employees, take a $4.6B …
Carriers weigh in on using ‘fatally flawed’ coverage maps for dishing out universal service funds
The Competitive Carriers Association (CCA) has joined the chorus of concern as to the possibility that some wireless carriers falsely reported information about their coverage areas to the FCC, therefore violating mapping rules pertaining to the Mobility Fund Phase ll reverse auction, as reported by Wireless Estimator. CCA Sr. V.P. Tim Donovan testified during a House Communications and Technology hearing …
Mobile infrastructure industry pioneers honored at WIA Hall of Fame ceremony
Five titans of technology were honored last night in Washington by the Wireless Infrastructure Association during its inaugural Mobile Infrastructure Industry Hall of Fame ceremony. The ceremony honored trailblazers who have shaped the wireless infrastructure landscape. Federal Communications Commission Chairman Ajit Pai delivered opening remarks. The five inductees were Neville R. Ray, Executive Vice President and Chief Technology Officer of T-Mobile; Steven E. Bernstein, founder …
T-Mobile asking for ruling as to the legality of an additional insured certificate
In a Nov. 9, 2018 filing, the Ninth Circuit has asked Washington state’s Supreme Court to consider whether an insurer must cover a carrier’s costs in a lawsuit alleging its subcontractor’s rooftop antenna installation caused damage to an apartment building in the Bronx, N.Y., stating that Washington state law is uncertain on a critical issue in the case. The Ninth …
42 dead in Paradise fire as telcos assist in providing emergency communications
Forty-two people have died as a result of the wildfire in Northern California that wiped out the town of Paradise, making the Camp Fire the deadliest in state history. The death total is expected to rise since hundreds of residents are still unaccounted for. Carriers were quick to provide cell service support since the area has lost a number of …
Allan Tantillo joins Vertical Bridge as VP of New Technologies
Vertical Bridge Holdings, LLC, the largest private owner and operator of communications infrastructure in the United States, announced that Allan Tantillo has joined the company as Vice President of New Technologies. In his new role, Tantillo will focus on identifying and creating opportunities that help clients deploy new wireless technologies utilizing Vertical Bridge’s wide range of assets. “These are exciting …
T-Mobile/Sprint merger would cause substantial harm to nation’s workforce: CWA
The Communications Workers of America (CWA) has again reached out to the FCC, blasting the proposed $26 billion acquisition of Sprint by T-Mobile, alleging that the carriers’ claims that the merger would provide “robust competition to the 5G era” is a red herring and it will likely result in pink slips for 30,000 jobs across the nation. Last August, the …
Verizon taking lion’s share of blame for continuing Hurricane Michael site outages
Hard-hit Bay County, Fla. is showing, according to FCC data, that 30% of its cell sites are still down as of Oct. 22, 2018 from Hurricane Michael. A week ago, that percentage was at 62%. (See data below.) Recent news reports indicate that Verizon, a key carrier for Panama City and outlying suburbs in Bay County is still struggling to …
Industry’s first-ever influential contractor survey’s deadline is October 10
Make your company’s concerns count As wireless contractors are acutely aware, contractor firms in the industry have experienced trends that have seen payment terms go from 30 days to 60 days, and now are settling in at 90 to 120 days, placing an undue financial burden on contractor companies. It’s not whether these terms could potentially compromise safety and hinder …
Sprint paints a terribly bleak survival picture for the FCC if merger is nixed
Earlier this month the FCC, which is reviewing the planned merger of T-Mobile and Sprint Corp, said it had paused its 180-day review clock to give the agency time to analyze a large, complex submission on benefits that the proposed merger would create. On Wednesday, Sprint took a different path to grease approval by the agency – providing a presentation …
Carriers’ post-hurricane snow job promos beginning to flood the media
Carriers are trying to outdo each other in presenting how well their network faired following Hurricane Florence’s slow destructive dance across the Carolinas. Now a tropical depression, Florence is still a life-threatening storm as widespread flooding continues to destroy homes and cut off communities from resources and cell service. Yesterday, in a press release, Verizon said their “network continues to withstand …
Contractor cash flow could be the real culprit in the US’s inability to quickly roll out 5G
It’s the delayed payments, stupid! Commentary – Although we’re treated to almost a daily dose of news about how macro and small cell siting issue delays could adversely impact a successful 5G buildout in America, initial data from Wireless Estimator’s industry-supported Terms of Payment Survey indicates that carrier-generated cash flow problems of contractors could be 5G’s Achilles heel. To draw …
Plane crash toppling Louisiana tower leads Fast-Forward Friday articles
Fast-Forward Friday is Wireless Estimator’s latest news offering that provides an overview of relevant industry news stories presented during the week by other media that were not covered by our staff, along with a link to the article to go upstream and read it in its entirety. After all, the articles’ authors did all the heavy lifting, and capsuling their content and …
