Telecommunications companies report ‘cascading impacts’ from chip shortages

A bevy of US telecommunications groups warned the Federal Communications Commission that an ongoing global semiconductor shortage could slow network deployments and impede their ability to fulfill key requirements associated with certain federal programs. Responses to the FCC's recent call for information on the shortage's impacts have flooded in from a multitude of organizations, including CTIA, the Telecommunications Industry Association (TIA), Rural Wireless Association (RWA), Competitive Carriers Association (CCA), NCTA – The Internet and Television Association, Verizon, Qualcomm, and Mavenir. Their statements show that the shortage has varied impacts across the communications sector, from broader infrastructure issues all the way down to specific user products. Subsequent ripple effects include "harming efforts to bridge the digital divide and expand access to high-speed internet to underserved communities, including communities of color and other economically distressed areas," according to TIA. Telecommunications companies asked that to mitigate short-term effects, the FCC take the helm in diverting supplies to critical communications providers and ensure that new FCC policies do not disrupt the critical supply chain from Asian semiconductor makers.