BROADBAND BREAKFAST INSIGHT: This is from Dave Burstein, a telecom geek/journalist/gadfly, and who frequently has some interesting observations about broadband technologies, and the politics behind them. In this pieces, he's reporting on the thoughts of leaders in the mobile industry, to the effect of just how overblown is the hype behind 5G wireless technologies. No… Keep Reading
WASHINGTON, July 30, 2014 - Internet service providers are adopting more usage-based pricing models and consumers may be using the internet less as a result, according to preliminary results from a Government Accountability Office study. Consumers may also be neglecting benefits of lower-cost models due to confusion over data caps, the report found. "In the… Keep Reading
WASHINGTON, July 29, 2014 – An alliance designed to serve the wireless broadband needs of rural America has partnered with Sprint to provide fourth-generation LTE service to members of the NTCA that are calling themselves the Rural Broadband Alliance, according to details unveiled in a webinar on Thursday, July 24. In a webinar hosted by… Keep Reading
WASHINGTON, July 28, 2014 - City leaders in Wilson, North Carolina, and Chattanooga, Tennessee, want the Federal Communications Commission to pre-empt state laws that would prevent them from expanding their municipal networks, Broadcasting & Cable reported. With an existing ban in place in North Carolina, Wilson can only serve its municipal network, Greenlight, to residents… Keep Reading
WASHINGTON, June 17, 2014 - The House Energy and Commerce Committee put forward an opportunity for individuals and interest groups to offer comment on telecommunications policy, and many individuals and trade groups took advantage of the opportunity, The Hill reported The Telecommunications Industry Association said that in 1996, lawmakers didn't grasp the manner in which… Keep Reading
Wall Street and K Street are separated by a mere 225 miles, but for many companies they are worlds apart. In particular, industry observers would do well to compare everything said to policymakers with statements by the same competitors made to Wall Street investors. Defense companies, for example, warned policymakers that sequestration would spell the… Keep Reading
WASHINGTON, February 12, 2013 - The United States is, in fact, among the world leaders in broadband deployment, according to a study released Tuesday by the Information Technology and Information Foundation. “Through this report, we identify multiple areas where America is doing well, where improvement is needed and most importantly the real reasons for some… Keep Reading
LAS VEGAS, January 9, 2013 - Broadband is now so thoroughly integrated within electronic devices, and broadband providers have done so much to advance faster internet connectivity, that now has become the time to apply broadband to solve society's toughest problems: health care, educational improvement, and environmental sustainability. That was the message that the CEO… Keep Reading
December 18, 2012 – The year 2012 has provided significant progress in broadband within the United States. Whether through policy developments, or through technologies advancing the rate of internet speeds, the business case for making use of those higher speeds is also progressing in a meaningful way. It’s almost as if the presidential and other… Keep Reading
April 2, 2012 – I admit to being taken in yesterday by Google’s April Fools prank – Gmail Tap. This priceless video promises to bring Morse code back for the smart phone era. Gmail Tap hit a powerful nerve: how to make smart phones more useful for the things we do besides talking on them.… Keep Reading
WASHINGTON, July 20, 2011- Both AT&T and Verizon taken steps to to deploy their 4G LTE networks in recent months, with Sprint and T-Mobile heavily advertising their existing 4G technologies. With rampant speculation regarding the iPhone 5 industry watchers have predicted that consumers would be clamoring for the faster speeds promised by LTE. "Not so," says consumer research firm Retrevo. Keep Reading
WASHINGTON June 23, 2011- The Android Central blog leaked Wednesday what it claims are internal Verizon Wireless documents that show details of tiered data pricing for wireless plans to be released in July. Verizon Wireless stated last year that it would have to eventually transition away from unlimited data to a tiered system. Keep Reading
WASHINGTON, May 26, 2011 - Let’s start with the facts. A stand-alone T-Mobile is not an option for the future. German parent company Deutsche Telekom had announced that it was seeking a deal and had considered a speculative offer, Sprint and AT&T for the sale. T-Mobile did not have the cash or spectrum to invest in a next-generation, 4G LTE wireless network. And without a 4G network, there could be no future for T-Mobile, its customers and employees. AT&T and T-Mobile use the same technology. Combining T-Mobile and AT&T spectrum turns two two-lane roads into a four lane superhighway. AT&T is willing to put up $8 billion in extra investment. And AT&T, a financially healthy company, will pay for the transaction in equity and internal cash flows. Keep Reading
WASHINGTON May 25, 2011 - AT&T announced Wednesday that it will upgrade its HPSA+ network to Long Term Evolution (LTE) in five major markets starting this summer, representing the company's first steps into adopting the standard on its nationwide network. LTE networks represent upgraded technology from HSPA+ networks, allowing increases in speed capabilities. Keep Reading
WASHINGTON May 12, 2011- The Senate Subcommittee on Antitrust, Competition Policy and Consumer Rights assembled leading mobile CEOs Wednesday to explore the proposed merger between AT&T and T-Mobile. “The proposed merger between AT&T and T-Mobile will bring together two of the four remaining national cell phone carriers to create the nation's largest cell phone network, with an estimated 43 percent market share,” said Sen Herb Kohl (D-WI), Chairman of the Subcommittee, setting the tone for the hearing. “Should this deal be approved, AT&T and Verizon will control close to 80 percent of the national cell phone market.” Keep Reading
WASHINGTON April 18, 2011 - The New America Foundation, in cooperation with the Consumers Union, gathered representatives from the leading wireless services providers and consumers groups on Wednesday to discuss how requiring mobile broadband service providers to interoperate would affect consumer choice and pricing. Keep Reading
WASHINGTON, April 7, 2011 - The Wireless Communications Association International, a technology-neutral broadband advocacy organization, gathered industry experts to discuss next generation fourth generation wireless technology on Wednesday. Keep Reading
WASHINGTON, March 31, 2011 - The Brookings Institution assembled leading telecommunications experts and business representatives on Wednesday to discuss the future of spectrum policy and the impending merger between AT&T and T-Mobile. Keep Reading
WASHINGTON March 29, 2011 - With the acquisition of T-Mobile, AT&T may be not only solving a long standing question about where it would find the spectrum to deploy its planned 4G network, but also make a leap in its public image. Currently, AT&T uses a band of spectrum not supported by any other carrier in the world, meaning handsets must be specially made for the carrier. Both T-Mobile and AT&T use the same base technology, but the two carriers run their 3G networks on different bands of spectrum. The acquisition of T-Mobile would greatly increase the amount of spectrum and infrastructure that AT&T would possess, bringing service to a greater number of Americans. Keep Reading
WASHINGTON, March 17, 2011 - Verizon launched its first 4G capable phone Thursday, marking the first step into the next generation of high-speed wireless by one of the two biggest wireless carriers in the U.S. Keep Reading
WASHINGTON, March 15, 2011 - Despite fanfare regarding the end of exclusivity for the Apple iPhone with the launch of a CDMA version, the reality is that many carriers are still unable to attain certain devices. While the majority of current subscribers now have access to the once-exclusive iPhone, because AT&T and Verizon have been allowed to create a duopoly in the wireless industry, from a competition standpoint, AT&T and Verizon are the only two carriers with access to the device. Translation: Less than 2 percent of domestic wireless carriers have access to one of the nation’s most coveted devices. Just as the iPhone is not the only smartphone on the market, it is also not the only device that is unavailable to consumers. Due to exclusive handset arrangements, consumers are left to choose between robust coverage where they live or the latest hot device they desire. Keep Reading
WASHINGTON, February 10, 2011 - President Obama is scheduled to deliver a speech at Northern Michigan University, Thursday, detailing his plan to catalyze his State of the Union pledge to deliver wireless Internet to 98 percent of Americans within five years. In addition to spurring businesses to reach the 98 percent goal, the administration's Wireless Innovation and Infrastructure Initiative (WIII) aims to free up radio spectrum to alleviate an impending spectrum crunch, create a nationwide interoperable wireless network for public safety and drive innovation in the wireless broadband sector. Keep Reading
WASHINGTON, January 25, 2011 - The FCC issued an order Tuesday at its January open meeting that set a 4G common standard for a nationwide, interoperable, public safety mobile broadband network. The Order, which addressed changes recommended by the 9/11 Commission Report, would require the use of a Long Term Evolution (LTE) air interface in… Keep Reading
Long Term Evolution is growing faster than any other mobile platform in history, according to a recent report from the Global Mobile Suppliers Association (GSA). The GSA report includes both variants of LTE: Time Division Duplex and Frequency Division Duplex. Mobile carriers are developing 128 networks in 52 nations and conducting another 52 trials. TeliaSonera, which… Keep Reading
With the growth of mobile broadband the availability of 4G is becoming more important to consumers; however the term 4G is being used so differently by each of the mobile providers that soon it may be very difficult for consumers to compare mobile broadband offerings. As 4G networks are deployed, the definition and understanding of… Keep Reading
WASHINGTON, September 23, 2010 - After months of hinting and speculation, Verizon Wireless CEO Ivan Seidenberg has told the Wall Street Journal that the firm would introduce tiered data pricing. Currently AT&T is the only firm to tier mobile data on handsets Keep Reading
WASHINGTON, September 21, 2010 - The past few months have been filled with announcements from around the globe announcing the launch of long term evolution networks. The United States, however, is lagging in this realm. Keep Reading
WASHINGTON, August 31, 2010 - Intel has announced that it will purchase German firm Infineon’s wireless chip division. Infineon's wireless division primarily works with various LTE technologies. Keep Reading
WASHINGTON, August 30, 2010 - A recent filing by Verizon to the Federal Communications Commission shows that the firm may set up a long-term evolution network in Alaska. The filing was an application for the acquisition of the 700 megahertz band from Triad Keep Reading
WASHINGTON, August 30, 2010 - The Global Mobile Suppliers Association has published new data showing that 101 firm LTE network deployments are in progress or planned in 41 countries. The number of network commitments is 71 percent higher than GSA reported in a similar survey six months ago. Keep Reading
WASHINGTON, August 27, 2010 - TeliaSonera will launch an LTE network in Gothenburg, Sweden. The firm plans to roll out its network across 25 cities by the end of 2010 and 218 different locations by the end of 2011 Keep Reading
WASHINGTON August 16, 2010 - Telefónica O2 has announced that it will launch a pilot long-term evolution network in September. The network hardware will be provided by Nokia Siemans, which already has contracts to build 25 other trials worldwide. Keep Reading
WASHINGTON August 16, 2010- T-Mobile will wait two years to upgrade to 4G but will upgrade their existing 3G network to double its speed. Keep Reading
WASHINGTON August 13, 2010- Russian telecom firm Rostelecom has announced plans to build an LTE network. Keep Reading
WASHINGTON August 11, 2010- Telecom Italia has announced it will expand its testing of the Long Term Evolution technology, a fourth-generation wireless broadband standand, and which promises to provide speeds of up to 140 MBits. Keep Reading
WASHINGTON, August 5, 2010 – WiMax has always been seen as one of the ideal solutions to bring high-speed internet access to rural America, but it has yet to achieve its full potential. With the majority of mobile providers choosing long term evolution, or LTE, as their preferred 4G technology, WiMax seems to have lost its momentum. However the technology has become increasingly popular in Asia. Keep Reading
WASHINGTON August 3, 2010 – Greek mobile provider Cosmote to launch a LTE network based just outside of Athens. Keep Reading
WASHINGTON, August 2, 2010- Russian owned Mobile TeleSytems has announced this week that it will be launching a LTE network in Uzbekistan. The network will be the first of its kind in central Asia and the first non-TeleSonera owned network. Keep Reading
WASHINGTON, July 30, 2010 – San Francisco area public officials have announced that they would enter into a partnership with Motorola to construct a 700 MegaHerz LTE system – one of 21 in the country granted the right to do so by the FCC. Keep Reading
WASHINGTON, July 21, 2010- LightSquared, a new broadband wireless data network, is expected to cover 92 percent of the United States population with LTE by 2015. Private-equity firm Harbinger Capital Partners announced its LightSquared network on July 20, and is expected to officially launch the network sometime next year. The network will initially start in Las Vegas, Phoenix, Denver and Baltimore. Keep Reading