Network management

Federal Communications Commission Chairman Ajit Pai has circulated a draft Notice of Proposed Rulemaking aiming to establish a 5G Fund for Rural America, which would distribute up to $9 billion across the country for 5G connectivity. The 5G Fund would use the Universal Service Fund to specifically target rural areas that would not see timely deployment of 5G service absent support and are not likely to be covered by the T-Mobile transaction commitments.

House Commerce Committee Chairman Frank Pallone, Jr. (D-NJ), Ranking Member Greg Walden (R-OR), Communications Subcommittee Chairman Mike Doyle (D-PA) and Subcommittee Ranking Member Bob Latta (R-OH) released the following statement today after President Trump signed the Secure 5G and Beyond Act of 2020 (S. 893) and the Broadband DATA Act (S. 1822) into law:

March 23, President Donald Trump signed into law the “Secure 5G and Beyond Act of 2020” (S 893). The Act requires the President to develop and implement a strategy for the adoption of secure wireless communications technology in the US and abroad.  The strategy will protect the American people from security threats to telecommunications networks and 5G technology.

The coronavirus outbreak and the rise in remote work has advanced the need for more robust 5G technologies in the US. Verizon stated March 18 that the demands on bandwidth increased 75% over the previous week. The Federal Communications Commission and federal government are trying to accelerate deployment in urban and rural areas. But, the global pandemic has forced a supply chain slowdown that may delay further expansion of 5G.

Network reliability and network resiliency are distinct concepts that are inextricably linked. “Network reliability” means that you can rely on the fact that you will have phone service to make and receive phone calls and text messages. As an example, a network can become unreliable from a lack of network maintenance that leads to total degradation, or a lack of preparation to handle technological failure.

AT&T's mandatory-arbitration clause is unenforceable in a class-action case over AT&T's throttling of unlimited data, a panel of US appeals court judges ruled. The nearly five-year-old case has gone through twists and turns, with AT&T's forced-arbitration clause initially being upheld in March 2016.

While our universities and tech firms still lead in cutting-edge innovation — from artificial intelligence to 5G wireless technology — it is China that has deployed them. The US is losing the commercialization race, a failure of our own making. America has no domestic manufacturer of 5G equipment, so it must rely on European or Chinese suppliers.

Much like TaxWatch, one of the Federal Communications Commission’s chief priorities under FCC Chairman Ajit Pai has been to serve as a watchdog to identify and repeal bad regulations and learn from the lessons of the past. By eliminating regulations that impose unnecessary costs on the economy, our actions protect the American consumer, facilitate the deployment of new communications networks to connect distant communities, and help close the so-called “digital divide.” Now, the Communications Act envisions an important role for the states and municipal actors (like local utility and zoning

The long-touted fifth generation (5G) of wireless communications is not magic. We’re sorry if unending hype over the world-changing possibilities of 5G has led you to expect otherwise.

In one year mobile Video Experience has significantly improved in 59% of 100 countries analyzed. Top-ranked countries for mobile download speed were far from top in Video Experience. South Korean users’ experience ranked first for download speed yet 21st for video, while Canadians’ were third fastest for download speed in Opensignal’s State of Mobile report, but just 22nd for video.