FCC Probing Wireless Carriers with 911 Location Rules

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FCC Probing Wireless Carriers With 911 Location Rules The FCC Enforcement Bureau on Friday said it’s looking into whether nationwide wireless carriers are complying with FCC rules that require them to deploy dispatchable location information or meet certain vertical location accuracy requirements. Wireless carriers were supposed to begin meeting the requirements by April 3. Vertical location information helps first responders find 911 wireless callers in multi-story buildings.

Acting Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel said the agency adopted rules in 2015, to improve location information for wireless 911 callers. “But there has been too little progress since then, and I have consistently called on this agency to do more to ensure that our rules are delivering actionable information.” She said it’s time for the Commission, public safety, and wireless carriers to work together. Continue Reading

Unprecedented Drop: Huawei’s Sales Decrease Amid U.S. Sanctions For the first time, Chinese telecom Huawei reported a quarterly revenue decrease, reported MyBroadband. The company’s revenue fell 11 percent to $33.5 billion in the fourth quarter of 2020. Overall, Huawei’s sales grew by 3.8 percent year-over-year, with profits increasing by 3.2 percent, a “marginal growth,” according to KPMG.

The U.S sanctions placed on Huawei are being blamed for the drop, according to MyBroadband, with smartphone shipments decreasing by 42 percent in the final quarter of 2020. The company is emerging from its most challenging year on record due to Trump-administration sanctions which squelched its smartphone business and hindered advances into chipmaking and 5G networking. Continue Reading

Media Ownership Fight Lands Back at FCC’s Door The Supreme Court on Thursday reversed a lower-court decision allowing former FCC Chair Ajit Pai’s relaxation of media ownership rules to stand. How the decision impacts tower owners remains to be seen. Increasingly, stations have chosen to lease, rather than own their towers. During a sale or purchase, if there is a tower lease, then that agreement typically becomes one more element of the transaction.

The broadcast industry and several Republican lawmakers had been seeking to relax the ownership limits for decades, saying the restrictions were outdated. Television networks and their local affiliates, including ABC, NBC and CBS, backed the appeals, arguing that consolidation would help ensure the economic survival of local television amid competition from internet companies that provide video content. Television stations have said they are increasingly losing advertising dollars to digital platforms, reported Reuters. Continue Reading

California Free Weather Alert Radios Given Out in Santa Rosa to Combat Wildfires Santa Rosa, CA is slated to distribute 12,000 weather radios to residents in April and May, reported The Press Democrat. The city will hold four drive-thru radio giveaways, prioritizing residents most vulnerable to wildfires. The “giveaway” was also conducted recently in Ventura County, CA.

“Since 2017, the City has continued to make improvements in emergency alerting capabilities, including identifying tools that can operate during power outages and cell tower failures,” Fire Chief Scott Westrope said in a statement.

The radios are made possible with the help of a grant from the Federal Emergency Management Agency. Residents can determine eligibility by following this link: srcity.org/3368.

Deutsche Telekom May Take Control of T-Mobile According to Deutsche Telekom CEO Tim Hoettges, T-Mobile could soon be under German management, reports Telecom.com. "It's harvest time," quipped Hoettges to shareholders, referring to Deustche Telekom's growing acquisition of T-Mobile holdings.

At the company's annual meeting, Hoettges announced that he expected to increase the current 43 percent control of T-Mobile to more than 50 percent in the coming months, placing the reins in Deutsche Telekom's hands. According to the CEO, future plans include reducing the group debt generated by last year's take-over of Sprint. Although this year's dividend calculation for shareholders remained unchanged, Hoettges said he expects 2023 to 2025 to see over $60 billion going back to them.

Additional market machinations, such as the gain of 9 percent of the voting rights from Softbank, formerly under the Sprint umbrella, suggest that Deutsche Telekom will be able to deliver on its promises. Though no specific plan was unveiled, Hoettges’ statement that the dividend structure would "further develop" in coming years was presented as a tempting carrot for shareholders.

April 2, 2021 ~ Market Closed for Good Friday

Partnership Struggles: KPN Sues Ericsson Over Patent Infringement KPN NV, the largest Dutch telecommunications company, filed a patent-infringement lawsuit in Texas against Swedish telecom Ericsson, seeking monetary reparations. ET Telecom reported that the suit claims Ericsson infringed upon five KPN patents covering various wireless network functions.

According to a court filing, KPN offered to issue licenses to Ericsson for the infringed patents, but the Swedish company did not move forward with the deal. ET Telecom reported that KPN and Ericsson had worked together for over a decade. The Dutch company awarded the Swedish company a contract to build its 5G network's core components in 2020.

"We refrain from making any further comments since this is an ongoing legal matter," an Ericsson spokeswoman said.

FreedomFi to Deploy 5G CBRS Spectrum for U.S. National and State Parks Provider of private LTE/5G networks, FreedomFi, last week announced a partnership with AccessParks. The goal of the network is to employ 5G CBRS spectrum coverage across hundreds of sites within U.S. national and state parks using Magma open source 5G software. FreedomFi said the collaboration will allow millions of tourists visiting Yellowstone, Grand Canyon and other national and state park locations to access high speed wireless connections.

AccessParks was recently awarded a contract to deploy 5G wireless technologies to over 200 California state parks, according to Telecompaper, and the FreedomFi technology will also be a critical component in many of those installations, added the partners.

AccessParks says it’s the first broadband provider, so far, approved as a concessionaire by the U.S. National Park Service. Its partnership with FreedomFi kicked off two months ago and already has nine locations active with the technology, including the South Rim of the Grand Canyon. The aim, Telecompaper reported, is to have hundreds of highly trafficked tourist locations covered by the end of 2021.

AT&T to Put FirstNet First First Responders in 38 cities will now have access to 5G+ (5G using millimeter waves), and additional speed boost along AT&T's FirstNet network, reports GovTech.com. The faster speeds are being paired with "tower to core" encryption, protecting data transmissions along the entire route, not just limited sections. Further, AT&T says the first responders will see no additional charges for these services.

The cities where 5G+ is available range across 19 states, starting with major urban hubs like New York and Los Angeles. Towers hosting the core encryption will require additional modification. The upgrades are slated to be completed in early 2022. Continue Reading

Husch Blackwell Law Firm Opens Los Angeles, Bay Area Offices

Husch Blackwell last week announced the opening of new offices in Los Angeles and the San Francisco Bay Area. The new office openings were prompted by the arrival of a 21-lawyer litigation team from Dentons, an international law firm, which greatly expands Husch Blackwell’s presence in California, where the firm has maintained a Sacramento office since 2018. The group includes Los Angeles-based partners Bradford J. DeJardin, Frederic Norris, Kelvin Wyles, and Jules Zeman; the new Bay Area partners include Lisa L. Oberg, Lynne Patricia Blair, Michelle C. Jackson, Jennifer J. Lee, Michael E. Sandgren, and Christopher W. Wood.

The group also includes 11 counsel and associates. Joining the firm as counsel are Patricia Alberts, Arlene Barton, Erin Carpenter, Kimberly Chew, Daniel Hoye, Kathy Huynh, Karen Luong, and Natasha Sumner; among the three associates joining the firm are Natalie Lashinsky, Shayan Heidarzadeh, and Amrita K. Pannu. The firm has also added 14 administrative staff, bringing the total new-arrival headcount for its California offices to 35. Continue Reading

Broadband Associations Lobby White House A day after President Joe Biden formally proposed his infrastructure package earmarking $100 billion for broadband, executives from several community-based broadband groups met with White House officials.

The America's Communications Association, the Competitive Carriers Association, NTCA, the National Rural Electric Cooperative Association, the Rural Wireless Association and the Wireless Internet Service Providers Association met with administration officials about the broadband plan, according to WISPA, which led the group of CEOs. A WISPA spokesman said: “We're excited for the work ahead, and look forward to playing a leading role in getting all Americans online.”

Texas Senate Passes Broadband Bill Last week, the Texas Senate unanimously passed a bill to increase broadband access to underserved regions; it now moves to the House for consideration. Currently, one million Texans have no access to broadband, and another three million can’t afford service, reported The Item.

The bill is sponsored by Senator Robert Nichols, who discussed the urgency of the matter. “We’ve learned in the last year that children cannot learn, employees can’t work, businesses can’t run, and access to healthcare is severely limited without broadband,” he said.

The Item reported that the bill would create a broadband department within the University of Texas system to create maps that pinpoint where fewer than 80 percent of households have access to broadband internet. The broadband department is tasked with creating a program offering grants and low-interest loans to encourage expansion in underserved areas. In addition, it would be responsible for an overall broadband plan and accessing additional federal funds.

Safaricom to Bring 5G to Kenya Following the lead set by South Africa, Kenya is now the second African country to offer limited 5G service, reports MENAFN.com. The Safaricom project is supported by equipment provided by both Nokia and Huawei. It represents "a major milestone for the country," said Safaricom CEO Peter Ndegwa.

It is "an important step in Africa's 5G journey," agreed Kenechi Okeleke, senior manager for mobile operators and networks at GSMA (Global System for Mobile Communications). "As these things become more commonplace in the region, then we are likely to see that stronger demand for 5G services in a way that saw that strong demand for 2G services in the early 2000s," said Okeleke. "And it is that demand for 5G services that will improve the economics of investments into 5G networks." Continue Reading

Wildfire Red Flag Warnings Issued for Seven Great Plains States

Red Flag Warnings have been issued for areas of the Great Plains including sections of North Dakota, South Dakota, Nebraska, Minnesota, Iowa, Kansas, and Oklahoma according to Wildfire Today. Very low relative humidity and strong winds are predicted.

The Hot, Dry, Windy Index for April 2, shows elevated wildfire danger for many areas in the western U.S. This new tool for fire managers, considers the atmospheric factors of heat, moisture, and wind. It is a multiplication of the maximum wind speed and maximum vapor pressure deficit (VPD) in the lowest 50 or so millibars in the atmosphere. It does not consider fuel moisture.

FCC Denies UScellular, Verizon Caller ID Authentication Extensions The FCC denied petitions from UScellular and Verizon for more time to implement the STIR/SHAKEN caller ID authentication framework. By June 30, carriers must implement the technology on the internet protocol (IP) portions of their networks.

The carriers told the Wireline Competition Bureau they’re having a hard time with the implementation and sought partial or complete extensions. The point of the technology is to thwart illegal caller ID spoofing. The STIR/SHAKEN caller ID authentication framework stands for Secure Telephony Identity Revisited (STIR)/ Signature-based Handling of Asserted information using toKENs (SHAKEN). Continue Reading

IP traffic throughput testing can provide confidence in link performance beyond the equipment’s built-in signal strength and link quality information. IP throughput testing is often done as part of service level agreements at link turn up and acceptance. Various types of traffic will traverse these new IP based links, with some being mission- critical. Running RFC2544 and/or Y.1564 tests will help verify traffic prioritization. While Bit Error Rate Testing (BERT) will test link stability.

This white paper describes turn-up and troubleshoot testing of point-to-point microwave links. Test procedures will be described step by step. Click here to access the White Paper.

NEW DATE | IXUS 2021.1 Webinar Friday, April 9, 2021 @ 10 a.m. EST

Ensuring rapid deployment of 5G infrastructure, especially mmWave technologies relies on fast and accurate RF exposure assessments to accelerate the site acquisition process. Join IXUS for a free webinar to see how your organization can use IXUS to easily manage RF safety compliance in accordance with FCC OET 65, Safety Code 6 and other safety standards such as ICNIRP.

IXUS will present its comprehensive and cost-effective solution that simplifies the entire RF safety compliance process. You will learn about its state-of-the-art exposure prediction algorithms, advanced antenna synthesis techniques, including its approach for modeling beamforming or active antennas, and how to implement and manage this across your entire network. Please note the new date, Friday, April 9, 2021. Register here.

APC Towers is Hiring

APC Towers is one of the top private national tower developers in the country. Backed by over 50 years of experience from its leadership team, APC owns, operates and provides services for sites across 38 states. The company continues to grow and expand its team. APC Towers is seeking qualified candidates to fill the following positions. Click to learn more about each role:

Paralegal Collocation Manager Executive Admin & Office Manager

To apply, email your resume to Danny Agresta at [email protected].

LBA Group: Technical Sales Specialist

LBA Group is seeking a Technical Sales Specialist, located in Greenville, NC. For more information or to apply email Jennifer Cargile at [email protected].

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Mt. Allison, San Jose, CA broadcast antenna install by Wireless Infrastructure Services.

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Managing Editor: Jim Fryer Washington Bureau Chief: Leslie Stimson Business Editor: John Celentano Contributing Analyst: Martha DeGrasse Reporter: Keara Piekanski Marketing & Advertising: Megan Reed Creative & Advertising: Cara Aston Advertising: Phil Cook

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