RWA Discusses 5G Fund Issues With Carr Aide
Rural Wireless Association representatives discussed 5G Fund issues, including the importance of waiting for the BEAD program to play out before deciding where money is most needed, in a meeting with an aide to FCC Chairman Brendan Carr. RWA also…
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asked that the FCC “not take into account areas where T-Mobile plans to build 5G … as part of the conditional approval of its acquisition of Sprint,” said a filing this week in docket 20-32. “RWA noted that T-Mobile's six-year 5G deployment milestone deadlines, pursuant to the T-Mobile-Sprint merger approval, end on April 1, 2026,” the filing said. That deadline is 13 months away, “and by the time a reverse auction is initiated, these deadlines will have passed making any such pre-auction commitments unnecessary and incredibly anticompetitive.” RWA discussed the benefits of waiting for supplemental coverage from space to “develop beyond text messaging and voice services and how this emerging mobility service can enhance connectivity in underserved areas cost effectively without the need” for 5G Fund support.