Wireless Telecommunications

International Telecommunication Union, the World Bank, Global System for Mobile Communications (GSMA) and the World Economic Forum (WEF) have launched an accelerated action plan to better leverage digital technologies and infrastructure in support of citizens, governments and businesses during the COVID-19 pandemic.

2020 has demonstrated the resilience of our network plan we laid out over half a decade ago. And it’s given us all the motivation we could ever need to continue connecting Americans and first responders through FirstNet, fiber, 5G and more. We recently wrote a whitepaper titled “7 Principles of AT&T’s Network Transformation” that summarizes the next phase of our network journey.

The Federal Communications Commission's Consumer and Governmental Affairs Bureau granted conditional certification to MachineGenius to provide Internet Protocol Captioned Telephone Service (IP CTS) using only automatic speech recognition (ASR) technology. This is the first such grant and provides an opportunity for advanced technology to meet the FCC’s high reliability standards in providing captioned telephone service for deaf and hard-of-hearing Americans.

The National Association of Broadcasters is warning the Federal Communications Commission not to mess with the hard-fought compromise broadcasters struck with Microsoft over freeing up more white spaces spectrum for 5G, particularly in rural areas, while not interfering with broadcasters sharing the spectrum band. In comments on the FCC's white spaces proposal, which was unanimously adopted Feb.

As the Senate returns, Commerce Committee Chairman Roger Wicker (R-MS) says he’s ready to dive in on broadband discussions, an especially prime topic as Congress mulls its next phase of coronavirus relief. Chairman Wicker specifically invoked interest in reviewing Federal Communications Commission plans to dole out billions of Rural Digital Opportunity Fund dollars this fall. Chairman Wicker said that the auction would bring broadband to rural America. “We’re going to try to speed that up. It’s scheduled for October of this year.

Some top Trump administration officials are moving to take a more aggressive stand against China on economic, diplomatic and scientific issues at the heart of the relationship between the world’s two superpowers, further fraying ties. The bitter information war over the virus has become a core part of the competition, but the Trump administration’s efforts to counter China have sharpened across the board.

Altice USA notched its best-ever quarter for broadband subscribers additions in the first quarter. Altice added 50,000 broadband subscribers in the quarter as well as an additional 9,000 subscribers for its Altice Advantage tier, which is its low-income family broadband program. Driven in part by voluntary speed and rate increases, Altice's total broadband revenues in the first quarter increased by 14.2%. Altice's fiber-to-the-home (FTTH) deployments in the Optimum footprint slowed down due to permitting issues.

On March 19, 2020, Sens Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) and Tina Smith (D-MN) wrote to Federal Communications Commission Chairman Ajit Pai to urge the FCC to take action to ensure that all K-12 students in Minnesota have access to high-speed internet so they can continue their education while schools are closed in response to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.

Comcast said it beat earnings estimates for the first quarter of 2020, but missed on revenue, as the pandemic impacted the theme parks business and the theatrical division faced a tough comparison to year-ago hits. Highlights include: Total High-Speed Internet Customer Net Additions Were 477,000 (Not Including 32,000 Free Internet Essentials Customers), the Best Quarterly Result in 12 Years. High-speed internet revenue increased 9.3%, driven by an increase in the number of residential high-speed internet customers as well as an increase in average rates.

The Federal Communications Commission made it easier for individuals who have lost their employment during the coronavirus pandemic and who qualify for Lifeline benefits to enroll in the Lifeline program. Specifically, the FCC’s Wireline Competition Bureau temporarily waived the requirement that consumers seeking to qualify for the program based on their income must provide at least three consecutive months of income documentation.