The Pentagon's fight to kill Ligado's 5G network

Even as major players like Verizon and AT&T are rushing to roll out 5G, a little-known company is looking to build its own alternative network using the wireless technology with the intent to connect the various devices in our lives. With so much hype around 5G, you'd expect a red carpet for this initiative. But the company, Ligado Networks, has run into some high-profile opposition: the US Defense Department. It's the latest twist in a long-running saga over the idea of an alternative cellular network. Ligado, a wireless satellite venture known previously as LightSquared, has been working for nearly two decades to deploy its wireless spectrum, originally earmarked for satellite services, to help telecom companies deliver next-generation wireless offerings. The Pentagon says the system Ligado proposes would mess with the GPS signals that are vital to military operations.