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  2. August 2020

August 2020

Another Non-Geostationary Orbit Satellite Broadband Operator Gets FCC OK for US Operation

The US is set to get another satellite broadband provider that uses a non-geostationary orbit (NGSO) approach. The Federal Communications Commission has approved market access to OneWeb, a NGSO satellite broadband operator that filed for bankruptcy earlier in 2020 but is back in action after receiving an investment from the British government. NGSO operators use constellations of satellites that orbit the earth at lower altitudes in comparison with traditional geostationary satellites.

Trump campaign proposes ‘national’ 5G

As the Republican National Convention kicked off, the Trump campaign touted 5G among the president’s second-term goals, specifically stating he would “win the race to 5G and establish a national high-speed wireless internet network.”  This phrasing is a head-scratcher given the Trump orbit’s past flirtations with nationalizing 5G, an approach taking multiple forms over the years and deeply opposed by many at the Federal Communications Commission and on Capitol Hill.

In remote Alaska, broadband for all remains a dream. So a school district got creative

About as far west as you can go in the US before hitting Russia lies the string of Aleutian Islands. It's where the Discovery Channel's The Deadliest Catch is filmed and where most fish destined for restaurants in the continental US gets processed.  A tiny school system in the region, the Aleutians East Borough School District, educates 230 students across four schools. About 85% of the kids are Alaska Native. Traveling between the four schools requires flights on twin-engine planes or, in one case, a flight followed by a helicopter ride.

As Virtual Learning Resumes In Pandemic, Chicago Groups Plead For Internet For All

Concerned parents and activists gathered in front of Chicago's Englewood neighborhood Comcast branch demanding that the federal government ensure internet access for all children as classrooms nationwide prepare to go virtual. Activists in several cities, including Chicago, Washington D.C., and Oakland participated in #InternetForAll’s national call for action, calling on the Federal Communications Commission and the US Department of Education to address the estimated 15 million students “logged out” across the country.

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