Wireless Internet

Federal Communications Commissioner Michael O'Rielly tweeted:

While I generally withhold all comments regarding pending or prospective mergers, I find it necessary to clarify, at this time, that I am inclined to support T-Mobile/Sprint proposed merger, even if not convinced of the need for all the newly announced conditions being proposed.

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Acting Chief Neil Jacobs told the House Subcommittee on the Environment that 5G deployments using 24 GHz spectrum could negatively impact weather forecasting. Use of 24 GHz spectrum for mobile 5G could reduce the accuracy of weather forecasts by 30%, sending us back in time to the 1980s. Meteorologists use sensors to detect faint radio frequency signals emitted by atmospheric conditions. Meteorological satellites monitor various frequencies to collect data and predict weather.

As we’ve made our case for the New T-Mobile, we’ve been listening to the Federal Communications Commission and many others. We submitted a set of commitments to the FCC around the New T-Mobile to address what we’ve heard. Ultimately, the commitments are about our shared goal to put the US at the forefront of 5G innovation, driving massive economic growth, helping bridge the Digital Divide, creating more competition, and of course, giving consumers and businesses more for less.

Some lawmakers say the federal government should help small US wireless providers rip out and replace their existing Chinese network equipment. The Rural Wireless Association puts the collective price tag at $1 billion. Sen. Chris Van Hollen (D-MD) said he would raise the issue with Federal Communications Commission Chairman Ajit Pai and push for a solution in the Senate Appropriations Committee. “We need to provide support to those small and rural communities who have already installed some of this equipment and will need help in covering the costs of removing and replacing it,” he said.

House Commerce Committee Chairman Frank Pallone (D-NJ) and all 31 Democratic members of the committee introduced the the Leading Infrastructure For Tomorrow’s (LIFT) America Act, a comprehensive infrastructure package aimed at combating the climate crisis, expanding broadband internet access and protecting public health. (See

The American Public Power Association, American Water Works Association, Edison Electric Institute, National Rural Electric Cooperatives Association, and the Utilities Technology Council -- which together represent almost all of the nation's utilities, water, and wastewater facilities -- wrote to Federal Communications Commission Chairman Ajit Pai, warning him about the FCC moving too quickly to open up 6 GHz midband spectrum currently used by those utilities. The utilities say they need the spectrum for their mission-critical communications and that the FCC's proposal to open it up for unl

What is the Federal Communications Commission doing to make the future of Wi-Fi brighter? The answer is: a lot!  I know there’s a lot of excitement about what we’re doing in the 6 GHz band—what could be a massive, 1,200-megahertz test bed for innovators and innovation. But first I’d like to talk about its next-door neighbor on the spectrum chart—the 5.9 GHz band. There’s been a lot of debate about this band, and I’d like to share with you today my view on the right way forward.  I believe that the time has come for the FCC to take a fresh look at this band.

The report condemns the Federal Communications Commission for failing to adequately respond to the September 2017 hurricanes, which knocked out 95 percent of all cell sites, 97 percent of radio stations and all local television stations. The report calls out the agency’s failure to hold wired and wireless carriers to account for neglecting to build resilient networks or respond in a timely or sufficient fashion to restore communications to the islands’ residents.

David Redl, assistant secretary for communications and information in the Commerce Department, abruptly resigned, days after criticizing US 5G policy in a speech. Redl, who headed the National Telecommunications and Information Administration, had clashed with Trump administration colleagues over a range of issues related to 5G rollout, including federal policy for allocating airwaves. The conflicts within the Administration occasionally had played out on Capitol Hill in recent weeks.