Telecom Daily
Welcome to Faulkner's Telecom Daily. We publish Monday through Friday, updating top stories as events warrant.
Thursday, December 5...
FCC Chair Proposes $9 billion "5G Fund" to Bring Coverage to Rural America
The Federal Communications Commission (FCC)
Chair, Ajit Pai, has announced plans to create a $9 billion "5G Fund." The goal
of this new budgetary tool will be to draw on Universal Service Fund (USF) cash
to " deploy advanced 5G mobile wireless services in rural America." The FCC's
current plan would disburse the funds via a reverse auction process, much like
its current Connect America Fund efforts to proliferate terrestrial and 4G
broadband in rural areas of America. Pai noted that this fund would replace the
planned Mobility Fund Phase II, which would have focused on encouraging the
rollout of slower 4G LTE technology in similar areas. The agency noted that,
although it does plan to use the data collected as part of the Mobility Fund
Phase II program, it has concluded that 4G LTE coverage maps provided by
carriers for rural areas of the country are not sufficiently reliable to provide
accurate depictions of which communities are underserved. No timeline was
provided for when the first 5G Fund auction may take place.
AT&T Introduces New Portable Cell Site Loaded onto a Blimp
Shortly after announced major updates to its terrestrial FirstNet network,
AT&T has introduced a new type of FirstNet
cell site based on a platform capable of travelling via blimp. The first unit of
this kind, a 55-foot aerostat dubbed FirstNet One, was introduced as a way for
the carrier to quickly float a portable cell site over disaster areas without
the need for any equipment on the ground. The zeppelin-like platform is capable
of operating at 1,000 feet for a period of two weeks before needing to have its
gas supplies replenished. During that time it can provide full functionality in
winds up to 50 miles per hour, and can survive winds up to 70 miles per hour.
AT&T claims these facts will allow FirstNet One and other airships like it to
provide better coverage over a wider area than its other portable cell site
solutions. The device has already been tested in Tuskegee, Alabama, but has not
yet been deployed at any disaster sites. Additional information on FirstNet One
can be found within
AT&T's press release.
Google Finally Brings Android's Focus Mode Out of Beta
Google announced that Focus Mode, a new
feature for the Android mobile operating system announced at this year's Google
I/O Conference, is finally out of beta. The new tool is designed to help people
avoid distractions while using their smartphones by giving them more granular
control over when certain apps are accessible to them. A user can, for instance,
block out social media and streaming video apps during their regular work hours,
or before bedtime. Changes to Focus Mode that have been introduced since its
debut include multi-day control schemes, the ability to "take a break" in order
to unlock all apps for five to 15 minutes, and the ability to end app lockouts
early. Focus Mode is rolling out now to all Android 9 and Android 10 devices
that currently have access to Google's other Digital Wellbeing tools. More
information about Focus Mode can be found on
Google's
Blog.
....Michael Gariffo, Faulkner Information Services
New Security Management Product Is Now Available on the Web
Faulkner's newest information service, Security Management Practices, is now available to subscribers over the Web! For information about subscribing, just send an email message to sales@faulkner.com or call 800-843-0460 (856-662-2070).
Site content copyright 2019, Faulkner Information Services, a division of Information Today. All rights reserved.