Report: U.S. Tied with China in Global 5G Race

A year ago, the U.S. was behind several other countries, including China and South Korea, when it came to  5G readiness. Now, America has made strides and is tied for “first” place with China, according to a   new report from telecom research firm Analysys Mason, which conducted the analysis on behalf of CTIA. Making enough spectrum available to America’s wireless industry over the next five years will help secure 5G leadership, as well as add $391 billion to the U.S. economy and create 1.8 million new jobs, according to the research. CTIA President/CEO Meredith Attwell Baker cites efforts by the administration, Congress and the  FCC for the progress. Those efforts include FCC actions to modernize its telecommunications infrastructure siting policies and spur  industry investment. In March and September of 2018, the FCC updated its rules to treat small cells differently than macro towers, easing small cell deployment by speeding the approval process and capping siting fees in a  public ROW. Also, more than 20 states have looked to the agency’s rules as guidelines for their small cell infrastructure deployment rules. Continue Reading