Light Reading

Following in the footsteps of some smaller US cable operators, GCI, Alaska's biggest cable operator, is preparing to end its pay-TV service. GCI confirmed that it has informed its video customers that it will shut down its TV offerings by mid-2025 and allocate more of its resources toward broadband and mobile.

A fiery debate has erupted in the halls of telecommunications about traffic—the gigabyte rather than vehicular variety. On one side are the mountaineers, who argue data volumes will continue to climb as usage grows and more advanced applications take off. On the other are the dissenting levelers. Led by William Webb, an independent consultant and former Ofcom executive who has written several books on the topic, they foresee a plateauing of consumption as smartphone customers struggle to cram more gigabytes into the day.

It's very likely that the incoming Trump administration will smile on satellite Internet companies such as SpaceX's Starlink and Amazon's Project Kuiper. And that could have serious implications for fiber vendors like Calix and Corning, as well as fiber network operators like AT&T, Brightspeed, Altice, Windstream and others. The Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) program is designed to funnel $42.45 billion through US states for broadband networks in rural areas.

The fixed wireless access (FWA) market has largely matured, and it's no longer offering many surprises. As a result, the pressure the technology has put on the cable industry appears to be easing. "We now have better insights into FWA collectively," wrote the financial analysts at New Street Research. The analysts now expect T-Mobile to gain around 1.45 million fixed wireless customers next year.

Comcast's broadband business showed some surprising strength as the operator said it would've gained broadband subscribers in Q3 2024 if not for the demise of the Affordable Connectivity Program (ACP). Comcast lost 87,000 broadband subs in the third quarter, comprised of a loss of 79,000 residential customers and 8,000 business customers, lowering its grand total to 31.98 million.