LightBox releases a US broadband map while the FCC fixes its own

The FCC’s more accurate US national broadband map is expected to be a year away, but LightBox is providing one in the meantime.

A previous map of broadband availability used by the FCC was criticised as being inaccurate and greatly overestimating both the coverage and speeds available to Americans.

The inaccuracies – hindering critical decisions like funding allocations – were due to a reliance on data from ISPs themselves who were incentivised to overstate their...

9 September 2021 | Broadband

Qualcomm will reportedly continue helping Huawei to skirt US sanctions with 5G-less chips

A tipster claims that Qualcomm will offer more 5G-less versions of its chips that enable Huawei to skirt US sanctions.

Huawei is among the Chinese companies sanctioned by the US. The sanctions predominately stop Huawei from accessing American products relating to 5G and limit the company’s ability to make its own Kirin silicon.

Qualcomm’s latest and greatest chips feature 5G, leaving Huawei – typically a key Qualcomm customer – out in the...

6 September 2021 | 5G

T-Mobile ordered to prove it didn’t lie to get Sprint merger approval

T-Mobile has been ordered to prove it didn’t lie to government regulators about its 3G shutdown plans to win approval for its Sprint merger.

In a ruling by the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC), T-Mobile is ordered “to show cause why it should not be sanctioned by the Commission for violating Rule 1.1 of the Commission’s Rules of Practice and Procedure for false, misleading, or omitted statements.”

CPUC accuses T-Mobile of making false statements...

17 August 2021 | Legislation & Government

AT&T delays 500,000 FTTP builds due to fibre supply issues

AT&T has been forced to delay 500,000 of its FTTP (Fibre-to-the-Premises) builds due to an industry-wide fibre shortage.

Fibre is in high demand following a year when people were forced to appreciate the need for fast and robust connectivity. Unfortunately, the pandemic also played havoc with supply chains.

During a virtual conference, AT&T Senior Executive BP and CFO Pascal Desroches said:

"Through the second quarter, we hadn't really experienced any...

13 August 2021 | AT&T

Ookla analysis finds Starlink faster than the UK’s fixed broadband

Ookla’s latest analysis finds that Starlink’s median download speed is much faster than the UK’s fixed broadband average.

The analysis uses Speedtest data from Q2 2021 and found the average Starlink download speed to be 108.30 Mbps, over double the UK’s fixed broadband average of 50.14 Mbps.

Starlink’s lead narrowed in upload speed where it posted an average of 15.64 Mbps, compared to the UK’s fixed broadband of 14.76 Mbps.

Unsurprisingly, Starlink...

4 August 2021 | Broadband

FCC hopes its OpenRAN showcase will encourage operators ‘to invest in network security’

FCC Acting Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel has announced the US telecoms regulator will host an OpenRAN showcase next month.

OpenRAN is one of the industry’s most exciting new trends. The interoperable equipment provides greater flexibility to carriers and helps them to avoid vendor lock-in.

Governments are increasingly becoming cheerleaders of OpenRAN due to the security benefits of having many vendors in a network. This is especially true in many Western countries...

28 May 2021 | Legislation & Government

OneWeb acquires TrustComm as it deepens US government links

British satellite operator OneWeb is acquiring Texas-based TrustComm to offer Low Earth Orbit (LEO) network and connectivity services to US government clients.

OneWeb operates innovative LEO satellites which provide high-speed, low latency connectivity for governments, businesses, and communities around the world. 

The company was acquired by the UK government and Bharti Group last year and continues to make headlines. In April, GEO satellite giant Eutelsat took a...

11 May 2021 | Legislation & Government

CCS Insight: 5G is becoming mainstream in some markets despite rollout slowdown

Analysts from CCS Insight report that 5G is on the verge of becoming mainstream in some advanced markets, despite a slowdown in the rollout.

The analysts believe that global 5G connections will triple to 670 million this year and will still reach 3.6 billion by 2025. However, 5G fixed wireless access is likely to remain a niche technology.

Marina Koytcheva, VP of Forecasting at CCS Insight, said:

"Although our near-term expectations have been dented, we remain...

10 May 2021 | Legislation & Government

FCC allocates spectrum for US commercial space industry, including today’s Crew-2 launch

The FCC has allocated spectrum to support the growing number of US commercial space launches, including today’s Crew-2 mission.

SpaceX’s Crew-2 launch will send four astronauts – National Aeronautical Space Administration’s Megan McArthur and Shane Kimbrough, Akihiko Hoshide from the Japanese Aerospace Exploration Agency, and Thomas Pesquet from the European Space Agency – into orbit.

Weather-permitting, the launch is scheduled for 10.49am BST (5.49am EDT) at...

23 April 2021 | Legislation & Government

FCC is re-establishing its 5G security council which disbanded in March

The FCC is re-establishing its Communications Security, Reliability, and Interoperability Council (CSRIC), with a primary focus on improving 5G network security.

CSRIC VII was disbanded in March. Recent cyberattacks such as the high-profile SolarWinds breach have demonstrated the need for CSRIC to re-establish and continue its crucial work.

Jessica Rosenworcel, Acting Chairwoman of the FCC, said:

“I am committed to working with our federal partners and the...

16 April 2021 | Legislation & Government