Larry Thompson

There are a variety of landline or wireless technologies that can deliver broadband. In most instances, wireless solutions have an advantage with respect to mobility and transferability (the ability to move broadband investment from one subscriber location to another). However, this advantage often disappears (and sometimes flips) when considering the increased operational expenses of wireless and the ongoing capital investment required.

This paper considers specifically the extent to which fixed wireless services may be capable of delivering Gigabit‐level services in the kinds of sparsely populated rural areas that the Rural Digital  Opportunity Fund (RDOF) auction primarily seeks to serve. Fixed wireless networks will face difficult, if not insurmountable, challenges to provide Gigabit services in very select circumstances when attempting to service distant, non‐town rural subscribers.

Vantage Point Solutions (VPS) met with the Federal Communications Commission's Wireline Competition Bureau staff on March 14, 2019 to discuss Form 477 broadband data. VPS said broadband providers need an opportunity to analyze Form 477 reports to identify potential errors and correct them before the FCC makes key decisions on the 477 data, like Alternative Connect America Cost Model (A-CAM) II offers.

Wireless technologies like 5G may offer much promise, but they will rely even more deeply upon and serve as a complement to robust wireline broadband technologies rather than a replacement for them, according to a technical report by telecommunications engineering and consulting firm Vantage Point Solutions and filed with the Federal Communications Commission by NTCA–The Rural Broadband Association. The study, “Evaluating 5G Wireless Technology as a Complement or Substitute for Wireline Broadband,” reviews wireless technologies’ capability to meet current and future demands of America’s broadband customers. Vantage Point found that although there is much anticipation about possible speeds for 5G wireless networks, a 5G network relies on an extensive and robust wireline network and even then is a poor substitute for a wireline connection in terms of performance, reliability, and investment.

The report also contains a checklist of questions that should be asked in evaluating and validating the capabilities of any potential wireless deployment. Among the report’s key findings are:
Spectrum: 5G networks will require massive amounts of spectrum to accomplish their target speeds. At the very high frequencies proposed for 5G, the RF signal does not propagate far enough to be practical for any wide area coverage, which is particularly important for rural areas.
Access Network Sharing: 5G wireless technologies are not a good solution for the sorts of data-heavy uses and applications that are driving much broadband demand.
Economics: When compared to the costs associated with deploying a 5G network, especially in rural areas, fiber-to-the-home is often less expensive (particularly given how much fiber will be needed in any event for 5G) and will have lower operational costs.
Reliability: Wireless technologies are inherently less reliable than wireline, with significantly increased potential for environmental and line-of-sight impairments with the high frequencies used by 5G.