June 2018

AT&T’s CEO: After FirstNet tower climbs, 5G will be a software upgrade

AT&T CEO Randall Stephenson said that the company’s work to upgrade its network with FirstNet’s 700 MHz spectrum will position it to move to 5G network technology via a software upgrade. “To build out this FirstNet capability, this first responder network, we have to go climb every cell tower. Literally, we have to go touch every cell tower over the next couple of years,” explained Stephenson. "As we're touching those cell towers, every single one of them, we have a lot of spectrum in inventory.

This startup is letting anyone start their own ISP business so they can provide a better alternative to Comcast or AT&T

Necto, a startup which was recently accepted into Silicon Valley incubator Y Combinator, wants to make it easy for users to set up their own Internet service provider. While the type of network Necto is using isn't anything new, the company has a different business model it hopes will set it apart. Rather than charge customers for the service directly, the startup is searching for so-called operators to run private-label ISPs.

The Wiretap Rooms: The NSA's Hidden Spy Hubs In Eight U.S. Cities

The secrets are hidden behind fortified walls in cities across the United States, inside towering windowless skyscrapers and fortress-like concrete structures that were built to withstand earthquakes and even nuclear attack. Thousands of people pass by the buildings each day and rarely give them a second glance, because their function is not publicly known. They are an integral part of one of the world’s largest telecommunications networks – and they are also linked to a controversial National Security Agency surveillance program.