Wireless Telecommunications

This research analyzes the relation between mobile phone use – mobile Internet in particular – and employment, self-employment and job regularity in Uganda. It finds no evidence of any positive impact of mobile Internet use on employment or job quality, suggesting that either respondents do not use mobile Internet for job search practices or as a job tool, or that these uses are ineffective.

Verizon was a pioneer in fiber broadband with its Fios product, having launched it well over 15 years ahead of the fiber frenzy we now find ourselves in. Fios was very much the heart of Verizon broadband, but that appears to be changing. Today, and from all indications, the future of Verizon broadband is very much centered on its emerging fixed wireless business. Out of the 229,000 net broadband adds Verizon gained in Q1 2022, roughly 85 percent came from fixed wireless. In 2021, fixed wireless only accounted for 20 percent of the company’s net broadband adds.

The National Telecommunications and Information Administration is requesting comments on competition in the mobile application ecosystem.

The Federal Communications Commission's Public Safety and Homeland Security Bureau seeks to gain a better understanding of end-to-end Wireless Emergency Alerts performance. The bureau seeks to partner with alert originators to conduct localized, end-to-end WEA performance tests to be conducted in the third quarter of 2022. These tests will be designed to measure WEA’s capabilities with enhanced WEA geo-targeting enabled. The bureau will work with the selected alert originator(s) to define the parameters of the test and the roles and responsibilities of test developers and participants.

AT&T reported first-quarter results that showed continued success in customer growth across wireless and fiber. Consolidated revenues for the first quarter totaled $38.1 billion versus $43.9 billion in the year-ago quarter, down 13.3% reflecting the impact of divested businesses, mainly U.S. Video in the third quarter of 2021 and Vrio in the fourth quarter of 2021, as well as lower Business Wireline revenues.

The Federal Communications Commission voted to open a proceeding to explore options for promoting improvements in radio frequency (RF) receiver performance, including through use of incentives, industry-led voluntary approaches, FCC policy and guidance, or regulatory requirements.

T-Mobile announced that the company has reached 1 million fixed wireless customers after launching the service commercially in 2021. In addition, 10 million additional homes nationwide are now eligible for 5G Home Internet, bringing the total number of eligible households to more than 40 million, all covered with 5G. In Q4 of 2021, T-Mobile added more broadband customers than any other internet service provider (ISP) in the US, the company said.

The Federal Communications Commission's Wireline Competition Bureau seeks comment on the Petition for Declaratory Ruling filed on April 7, 2022 by T-Mobile USA. In its Petition, T-Mobile seeks clarification that the Bringing Puerto Rico Together Fund and the Connect USVI Fund permit it to use Stage 2 mobile support for the deployment of distributed antenna systems, which T-Mobile states would further the FCC’s goal to make networks more resilient to future disasters.

Comment Due Date: May 2, 2022 Reply Comment Due Date: May 9, 2022 (WC Docket No. 18-143)

Speedtest Global Index Market Analyses from Ookla identify key data about internet performance in countries across the world. This quarter Ookla has provided updated analyses for 44 markets that include details on fastest mobile and fixed broadband providers, performance of most popular devices and chipsets and internet speeds in cities.