Wireless Internet

Nonprofit broadband provider Mission Telecom unveiled Inseego’s MiFi Pro M4 mobile hotspot, which Mission Telecom is making available for $179. The mobile hotspot provides broadband to Mission Telecom customers—primarily nonprofits, schools, and libraries—with pricing starting at $5.99 per 100 GB line for schools. The hotspot allows users to benefit from high-speed connectivity, enhanced security, and cloud-based device management.

The House passed, by voice vote, legislation to reauthorize the First Responder Network Authority, which oversees FirstNet, the nationwide first responder network owned and operated by AT&T under a contract with the Commerce Department. The FirstNet Authority will sunset in February 2027 unless Congress reauthorizes it, something that users and lawmakers broadly agree would be disruptive.

America’s publicly funded emergency-communications network has sometimes failed during the exact disasters it was built to endure, prompting a bipartisan push for tighter oversight. During a 2024 nationwide network outage for AT&T, which operates the FirstNet service, ambulance crews couldn’t transmit electronic medical records to hospitals.

A panel at the Competitive Carriers Association show spoke to small, regional wireless carriers about their use of automation and AI, and perhaps the most interesting question was: “If you had one piece of advice to give to a competitive carrier just starting on their automation journey, what would that be?” Prajith Dhanapalan is head of Solutions and Private Networks at Xius, a company that provides wireless core technology.

Readers of a certain age will recall former New York City Mayor Ed Koch's famous "How'm I doin'?" But for any age, people can and should ask for an accounting of policymakers' performance. Recently, the Federal Communications Commission released its annual performance review for fiscal year 2025 (October 1, 2024—September 30, 2025). How well is the FCC delivering on its core broadband deployment mission?

In 2026, as organizations face the inflection point of connectivity demand and AI-driven transformation, strategic wireless investments are proving to be a catalyst for enterprise-wide success. More than three-quarters of organizations report operational efficiency gains (78%), see employee productivity improvements (75%), and report enhanced customer engagement (75%), while almost 7 in 10 (68%) experience positive revenue impacts from wireless investments.

It is now five years since Starlink first began to offer commercial service and we are only now starting to see its ability to disrupt the telecom business. Unsurprisingly, it is the legacy GEO and MEO operators that have been the first to feel the impact, facing a competitor with vastly different service capabilities and cost points.

Cliff Steinberg’s family owns a busy street corner building in the SoHo district of Manhattan. The first floor is home to the Grand Street Social restaurant, with various commercial tenants on other levels of the five-story building. About four years ago, he was approached about using the building to house Dish’s 5G antennas.

The Trump administration continues to give muddled guidance in terms of the whopping $21 billion in “non-deployment” funds states should have at their disposal from the “savings” created by unwelcome changes to the federal Broadband Equity, Access and Deployment program.

Amazon and Globalstar announced that they have entered into a definitive merger agreement under which Amazon will acquire Globalstar, enabling Amazon Leo to add direct-to-device services to its low Earth orbit satellite network and extend cellular coverage to customers beyond the reach of terrestrial networks. In addition, Amazon and Apple announced an agreement for Amazon Leo to power satellite services for iPhone and Apple Watch, including Emergency SOS via satellite.