Incompas President Angie Kronenberg has left the group, she said Monday on LinkedIn. "I recently resigned to pursue new career opportunities," she said. "It's been a great ride advocating on behalf of the competitive tech and telecom industry." She joined Incompas in 2013 as chief advocate and general counsel. An Incompas spokesperson told us CEO Chip Pickering would continue to head the organization as CEO and that the association will fill the position with someone versed in the issues Kronenberg handled.
Tapped to lead the FCC during the second Trump administration (see 2411170001), FCC Commissioner Brendan Carr is expected to be as aggressive as possible on spectrum and wireless siting issues, industry experts said. During President-elect Donald Trump's first administration, then-Chairman Ajit Pai made Carr lead commissioner on wireless siting.
Supporters of opening the lower 12 GHz band for fixed wireless use remain hopeful about a favorable FCC decision. That's despite the opposition from SpaceX and the major role its CEO, Elon Musk, is now playing ahead of the start of the second Trump presidency. FCC Commissioner Brendan Carr, President-elect Donald Trump's choice to lead the agency, has said repeatedly he will follow the guidance of FCC engineers about the band's future (see 2207140053).
During a Thursday Incompas virtual event, communications industry lawyers offered few clues about which lawmakers will fill vacant top GOP slots on the House and Senate Communications subcommittees, but CEO Chip Pickering forecast substantial leadership continuity on both chambers’ Commerce committees. Pickering and lawyers who spoke at the event, meanwhile, saw limited prospects during the lame-duck session that Congress would advance a spectrum legislative package or funding for the FCC’s lapsed affordable connectivity program and Secure and Trusted Communications Networks Reimbursement Program.
Semiconductor provider Spectra7 Microsystems appoints Omar Javaid, ex-Avaya, as CEO ... Scripps promotes Teresa Morgan to vice president-general manager-WFTS-TV Tampa, effective Jan. 1 ... Tegna appoints Dhanusha Sivajee, previously Angi, as chief experience officer ... Archtop Fiber names Keith Taub, ex-Technical Safety Services, as CFO ... Cybersecurity company Menlo Security names Bill Robbins, ex-Sophos, as president.
The Bureau of Industry and Security and DOJ are investigating U.S. mobile phone parts producer Lumentum for potentially violating U.S. export controls on shipments to Huawei, according to corporate filings.
Technology services provider DXC Technology appoints James Walker, previously IBM, as chief administrative officer ... Semiconductor supplier Renesas appoints Utae Nakanishi, ex-Micron, as senior vice president-chief human resources officer; promotes Malini Narayanamoorthi to India country manager and vice president-MID engineering; and transitions Julie Pope to senior vice president-strategic initiatives and UX Group.
Gogo's Galileo satellite connectivity service and its 5G air-to-ground connectivity service are on the verge of hitting the market, CEO Oakleigh Thorne told analysts Tuesday as it announced Q3 results. He said recent FAA certification means Gogo could potentially ship its HDX low earth orbit satellite terminal commercially to customers by year's end, targeting smaller and mid-size aircraft. It said the 5G chip for receivers should ship in Q2 2025. The HDX and faster FDX "are critical" to Gogo competing with SpaceX, William Blair's Louie DiPalma noted Tuesday. Galileo service "is critical to preserving the competitive positioning and capturing a portion of the untapped 14,000 business jets registered outside the U.S. that do not have broadband connectivity," DiPalma said. Thorne said Gogo expects it will close on Satcom Direct (see 2409300065) by year's end. Gogo is collaborating with OneWeb on satellite connectivity.
House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., noted interest Friday in having the chamber repeal the 2022 Chips and Science Act before quickly reversing course following a bipartisan outcry against the idea. During a campaign appearance Friday in Syracuse, New York, Johnson said that a GOP-led House next year “probably will” try repealing the Chips and Science Act, but “we haven't developed that part of the agenda yet.” The statute allocated $52 billion for domestic semiconductor manufacturing (see 2207280060). “What we oppose to in that bill is that it had too much crammed into it,” Johnson said: “When you take the Green New Deal out of the equation you will save trillions of dollars in the long run.” Johnson later clarified that instead there “could be legislation to further streamline and improve the primary purpose of” the Chips and Science Act by eliminating “its costly regulation and Green New Deal requirements.” Rep. Brandon Williams of New York, a Republican facing a tough reelection fight whom Johnson was campaigning for, issued a statement that he “spoke privately with the Speaker immediately after the event. He apologized profusely, saying he misheard the question. He clarified his comments on the spot and I trust local media to play his full comments on supporting repatriation of chips manufacturing to America.” Vice President Kamala Harris, the Democrats’ presidential nominee against former President Donald Trump, criticized Johnson Saturday. “Let's be clear why he walked it back: because it's not popular,” Harris said during a campaign appearance in Milwaukee. “It is my plan and intention to continue to invest in American manufacturing, the work being done by American workers” to invest “in American industries, including our industries of the future. That is the way we are going to win the competition with China for the 21st Century.”
As states gear up to spend tens of billions on subsidizing broadband network expansions, some also plan on designating public funds for "wraparound services," such as transportation and childcare for the broadband deployment workforce. Our analysis of states' broadband equity, access and deployment (BEAD) program volume 2 plans found many states saying they will prioritize subgrant applicants that provide such services. Wireless Infrastructure Association President Patrick Halley told us states that anticipate or potentially could have funds remaining from BEAD deployment activities must begin thinking about using that money, including putting it toward workforce development needs.