Fierce

Florida-based Tri-County Electric Cooperative teamed with Conexon Connect to deploy a 2,400-mile fiber-to-the-home (FTTH) network, aiming to deliver high-speed broadband to all of its members within the next few years. The $65 million project is the first FTTH initiative undertaken by an electric co-op in the state. Conexon Partner Jonathan Chambers said the company will be responsible for the design, construction and operation of the network, though Tri-County will own the actual infrastructure. It plans to use fiber and will offer 100 Mbps, 1-gigabit and 2-gigabit service plans.

Given T-Mobile’s recent history of arguing for more licensed spectrum, it’s easy to forget how much unlicensed spectrum plays into its overall strategy. But a recent application before the Federal Communications Commission serves as a reminder of that. T-Mobile is asking for special temporary authority (STA) to operate on spectrum in the 6110-6190 MHz portion of the 5925-7125 MHz (6 GHz) band in and around the areas of Alexandria and Falls Church (VA).

DOCSIS 4.0 is set to deliver faster speeds for cable network operators, but the next generation technology will also spur an operational sea change, said telecom consultant Sean McDevitt.“Historically, the cable industry had a ubiquitous mentality. DOCSIS 1.0 became 2.0 with 100% coverage and ubiquity to it,” McDevitt said, noting ubiquity refers to the idea that all subscribers in all nodes across the network have access to the same technology.

Frontier Communications, Altice USA and Greenlight Networks praised New York officials for scrapping fees commonly referred to as the state’s “fiber optic tax,” claiming the move will allow them to reallocate thousands of dollars toward deployments and speed broadband rollouts. The “fiber optic tax” refers to fees that in recent years were levied on fiber companies looking to use state-owned rights of way.

T-Mobile leases much of its 2.5 GHz spectrum from educational institutions around the country. And the carrier has made great efforts to keep the terms of these Educational Broadband Service (EBS) leases private. For instance, it is engaged in a dispute with Christian College of Georgia and demands that the college not reveal the terms of its lease.

Deutsche Telekom is making good on its promise to become majority owner of T-Mobile US, paying $2.4 billion to SoftBank Group to increase its stake to 48.4 percent in the US company. Deutsche Telekom (DT), based in Bonn, Germany, bought 21.2 million T-Mobile shares at an average price of $113 per share. The move raised its stake in T-Mobile by 5.3 percent.

The Federal Communications Commission’s upcoming 2.5 GHz spectrum auction is generating some excitement among smaller rural US operators because of the FCC’s decision to offer flexible-use, county-based overlay licenses. The auction, which will start July 29, will be for licenses in the 2.5 GHz band where no one currently owns the spectrum. Top executives at several smaller operators have said that they were encouraged by the FCC’s format for Auction 108 because it will be amenable to rural operators.