Tarana stays bullish on BEAD despite ‘underperforming’ fixed wireless access results

The revised Broadband Equity, Access and Deployment Program aimed to give non-fiber providers a bigger seat at the table. Low-earth orbit satellite gained traction, but the same can’t be said for fixed wireless access, according to Tarana VP of Government Affairs and Policy Carl Guardino. In his view, FWA “underperformed” as only about 11 percent of BEAD eligible locations were awarded to fixed wireless providers, per Connected Nation data. The lion’s share of funds went to fiber providers who won approximately 67 percent of locations. Guardino argued some states made “a lot of assumptions well beyond the 100/20 [Mbps] floor on speed,” noting they determined providers are “only scalable and get the most points” if they can show proof of gig-or-higher symmetrical speeds.