Reporting

Who are the wireless and wired telecom trade associations?

There are a large number of wireless and wired telecommunications trade associations; so many that it can be hard to keep track. Fierce Telecom created this list of the most well-known trade groups in the industry.

Reevaluating the cable-fiber rivalry: Much ado about nothing?

An unsurprising theme at Fiber Connect 2023 was executives from the fiber industry dragging its cable counterpart. For example, AT&T Fiber’s EVP Chris Sambar said, “don’t ask cable about symmetrical speeds, they don’t even know what that means.”  Derek Kelly, Lumos’ VP of market development, went as far as to say that “fiber is always the answer,” and suggested cable alternatives will not stand the test of time. But with all this talk about fiber versus cable, is the rivalry being overplayed?

Dish isn’t the only one interested in T-Mobile’s 800 MHz spectrum

Dish Network isn’t the only entity eyeing T-Mobile’s 800 MHz spectrum. Someone else who’s intimately affiliated with the spectrum is showing an interest, and it’s not one of the big wireless carriers. Burns & McDonnell (B&M), a large engineering and consulting firm, is seeking permission to participate in the court proceeding where Dish is asking for more time to buy T-Mobile’s 800 MHz spectrum licenses, according to a research note by New Street Research (NSR). Dish filed for an extension with the US District Court for the District of Columbia earlier in August, 2023.

Investment Firm Owner Helps Great Plains Communications Continue Rapid Expansion

Great Plains Communications is one of a growing number of tier 2 and 3 providers with long-term roots that has been acquired by an investment firm, a move that has helped the company expand rapidly.

As fires and floods rage, Facebook and Twitter are missing in action

As wildfires ravage western Canada, Canadians can’t read the news about them on Facebook or Instagram.

5G small cell deployments will likely get a boost

Some experts anticipate that US mobile operators will spend more on their small cell deployments in the coming months and use the technology to fill in coverage gaps and boost capacity in their 5G networks. Joe Madden, founder and lead analyst at Mobile Experts predicts that now that operators have deployed much of their 5G macro network, they will turn their attention to small cells and use the technology to fill in coverage gaps, solve capacity issues and provide in-building coverage. Although small cell deployments didn’t get a lot of attention in 2022, industry trade group CTIA reported

Federated CEO refutes those CBRS slams

In 2022, a study commissioned by CTIA basically called Citizens Broadband Radio Service (CBRS) a failure, in part due to its low power levels and limited use cases. Some saw it as a smear campaign against CBRS because CTIA would prefer the 3.1-3.45 GHz band to be licensed rather than end up looking more like CBRS, which involves a three-tiered sharing system to protect Department of Defense (DoD) incumbents. Federated Wireless 

T-Mobile cuts its workforce by 7 percent, about 5,000 jobs

T-Mobile announced to its employees that it is planning to reduce its workforce by about 7%, which equates to about 5,000 jobs. In a letter sent to employees, T-Mobile CEO Mike Sievert wrote that the cuts will impact employees in locations across the country, primarily in corporate and back-office, and some technology roles. This round of cuts will not affect retail and consumer care employees. “After this process is complete, I do not envision any additional widespread company reductions again in the foreseeable future,” wrote Sievert.

Can Congress fill the broadband labor pool?

In 2023, American employers were anticipated to need an additional 500,000 positions across all construction industries on top of normal hiring levels.