Network management

The Federal Communication Commission's controversial repeal of network neutrality in 2017 has yet to go into effect, but a researcher at Northeastern University has built an app that detects when mobile carriers may be throttling traffic to apps like Netflix and YouTube. Dave Choffnes and his Ph.D. students built the app, called WeHe, in 2017 and now it's available for anyone to download.

Wanting to lead in 5G is not enough to get the transition across the finish line. The key is to update our regulatory structures so that they are what I call “5G Ready.” This means taking concrete steps to reform our regulations and ensure that they incentivize the massive private sector investments necessary to build the networks of the future. I want to highlight three steps that I think regulators must take to get 5G Ready.

The Trump administration labored to clarify on Jan 29 that it currently has no plans to build its own ultra-fast 5G wireless network, despite publication of a memo that suggested the idea was under consideration. At issue is a proposal put forth by an unnamed official at the National Security Council, a White House-based body that advises the president on critical U.S. and foreign policy matters. The document called for the U.S. government to effectively nationalize a portion of the telecom sector — a radical departure from current policy — in a bid to combat Chinese influence.

Once the photographer Rian Dundon began seeking out cell-phone towers and transmission boxes, he started seeing them everywhere. Dundon’s resulting series of photographs, taken around the Bay Area, are scant on people, but instead highlight the telecommunications infrastructure–from tall, tree-like towers to clusters of boxes and cables–that have slowly taken over our cities and landscapes. The infrastructure, Dundon says, serves as a way to think about ideas and concepts that are largely invisible, namely, our creeping dependence on constant communication and data usage.

[Commentary] It’s been two and a half years since AT&T and Nokia developed a private, secure, reliable and high-capacity LTE network for smart grid technology, and began selling it to utility companies and others. So far, AT&T doesn’t have anything to show for it.

Shares of Verizon Communications are up after the company held its annual analyst day meeting, a centerpiece of which was the company’s plans to roll out broadband wireless service in select U.S. markets in 2018 using the newer “5G” wireless technology. However, the presentation on 5G service to the home seems to have landed with something of a thud amongst those who listened to the presentation. Craig Moffett of the eponymous Moffett-Nathanson boutique research firm this morning writes that there appears to be less than billed in the 5G announcement.

With the rules governing internet services set to be rolled back this week, service providers and their detractors are envisioning new models that could translate into a wider range of fees—both lower and higher. The current rules, expected to be all but eliminated by the Federal Communications Commission, require that internet service providers treat all traffic on their networks equally, a concept known as net neutrality.

Ensuring that we have the skilled workforce in place to deploy, maintain, and upgrade our nation’s communications infrastructure is one of the keys to ensuring that all Americans have access to advanced broadband networks. Importantly, the shift to 5G will require an enormous investment in both wired and wireless infrastructure. In fact, this transition could result in $275 billion in network investment, three million new jobs, and half a trillion dollars added to the GDP.  

The stakeholders the US Government Accountability Office spoke with identified two primary spectrum-related challenges for the internet of things (IoT)—the availability of spectrum and managing interference. Although not considered an immediate concern, Federal Communications Commission (FCC) staff and some stakeholders noted that rapid increases in IoT devices that use large amounts of spectrum—called high-bandwidth devices—could quickly overwhelm networks, as happened with smart phones.

The Federal Communications Commission is focused on streamlining the deployment of infrastructure needed to deliver next-generation wireless services. Last week, for instance, the Commission adopted an Order that eliminates the need for historic preservation review when providers replace utility poles for the purpose of adding antennas or other wireless equipment. Today, I can announce the Commission’s next step in our broader effort to promote and accelerate the deployment of wireless infrastructure.