Consumer Groups Support EchoStar’s 5G Construction Extension

WASHINGTON, Nov. 11, 2024 – The Open Technology Institute and Public Knowledge are supporting EchoStar’s extended deadline for rolling out a new 5G wireless network.

OTI and Public Knowledge conveyed their support for EchoStar’s 5G mobile infrastructure buildout extension in a joint letter sent to the Federal Communications Commission Thursday.

“The public interest conditions attached to the extension are both positive and unprecedented,” OTI’s Wireless Future Project Director Michael Calabrese said. “The FCC negotiated a win-win agreement, since the extension now requires [Echostar subsidiary] DISH to cover 80 percent of the U.S. population and to offer a low-cost 5G plan and device to consumers nationwide during the extension period.”