Duke Energy Goes to Court Over FCC Pole Attachment Decision

By Leslie Stimson, Inside Towers Washington Bureau Chief

UPDATE Inside Towers reported earlier this month the FCC stood by a 2021 decision concerning a pole attachment rate dispute between Duke Energy and AT&T. The agency denied Duke’s request for a review of the earlier decision. Now, Duke Energy has asked a federal appeals court to intervene. Specifically, Duke asked the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit to review the Commission’s decision, saying it was “adversely affected” by certain parts of the order. In its petition reviewed by Inside Towers, Duke says parts of the order “exceed or are inconsistent with the FCC’s jurisdiction and statutory authority” and “are arbitrary, capricious, an abuse of discretion or otherwise contrary to law.” Duke is asking the court to “hold unlawful, vacate, enjoin, and/or set aside portions of the Order.” Neither the FCC nor AT&T commented, according to Communications Litigation Today. The dispute between the powerco and AT&T concerned rates that Duke charged the telecom for attaching to its utility poles in the Carolinas. The Commission denied requests from Duke and AT&T to review portions of the decision. The Commissioners upheld an earlier Enforcement Bureau decision that found the rates AT&T paid under a Joint Use Agreement were “unjust and unreasonable.” It ordered the powerco to charge a lower rate, Inside Towers reported.

FCC Bans Telecom Gear That Poses Security Threat

The FCC now prohibits communications equipment deemed to pose a national security risk from being authorized for importation or sale in the United States. This is the latest step by the Commission to protect telecom communications networks.  

The new rules apply to future generations of equipment identified on the Covered List published by the FCC’s Public Safety and Homeland Security Bureau. The Covered List includes communications equipment produced by Huawei Technologies, ZTE Corporation, Hytera Communications, Hangzhou Hikvision Digital Technology, and Dahua Technology (and their subsidiaries and affiliates).

“The FCC is committed to protecting our national security by ensuring that untrustworthy communications equipment is not authorized for use within our borders, and we are continuing that work here,” said FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel. “These new rules are an important part of our ongoing actions to protect the American people from national security threats involving telecommunications.”

Africa’s Buoyant Tower Business

By John Celentano, Inside Towers Business Editor

Africa is an attractive market for independent tower operators for several reasons. First, there is a big and growing demand for wireless communications. The population of sub-Saharan Africa is big, estimated by the UN at around 1.2 billion people, growing at 2-3 percent a year. Yet, wireless penetration is only around 25 percent, according to recent MNO subscriber tallies. Second, post-pandemic, mobile connectivity is becoming increasingly important for personal, commercial, and public safety communications, especially in rural areas outside the major cities where wireline networks do not reach. Moreover, smartphone usage proportionally is still low but is growing rapidly with the demand for digital services such as mobile financial transactions. For instance, Vodacom M-pesa and Airtel Mobile Money financial services generate billions of wireless transactions in micro-loans and money transfers each year. For the quarter ending September 30, Africa’s largest multinational mobile network operators - Airtel, MTN, and Vodacom - all showed year-over-year service revenue growth in mid-single to low double-digit percentage range. Continue Reading

The Wireless Infrastructure Industry Sets a Bountiful Table

By Jim Fryer, Inside Towers Managing Editor

While we all take time this week to give thanks where it’s due…family, friends, health… the editorial staff at Inside Towers would like to express our appreciation for the privilege of covering this industry. Taking into account its performance over the last few years, with COVID, natural disasters, economic headwinds and the usual political tempest, the wireless infrastructure industry not only survived but, re-tooled, adjusted and, in many cases, thrived.  One of the things that continues to amaze me is the sense of community in the industry. For a global provider of products and services operating on many levels, there is still a “small town” mentality when it comes to its largess in times of catastrophic events such as hurricanes and wildfires, with tragic losses both on site and off, or the nurturing and encouragement given to its newcomers. We thank you for letting us be the “town crier” in that regard. Continue Reading

Qatar Scores Big with 5G Network at World Cup

By J. Sharpe Smith, Inside Towers Technology Editor

As the FIFA World Cup kicked off over the weekend, Qatar was wired up and ready with 5G technology. Throngs of fans engaging in the premier global football event will benefit from access to peak gigabit speeds provided by Vodafone Qatar and Ooredoo Qatar. The whole country, however, has benefited from increased investment in wireless communications infrastructure. Mid-band spectrum has also been allocated making high-speed internet possible. The story of how the country came to have a healthy cellular duopoly began four years ago when the government purchased a controlling share of Vodafone through the state-backed Qatar Foundation. The new owners employed a turnaround strategy that improved the operator’s reach, network performance, revenue growth, and customer acquisition rates, according to VanillaPlus. Continue Reading

Response Mostly Positive to FCC’s New National Broadband Maps

By Leslie Stimson, Inside Towers Washington Bureau Chief

UPDATE As the FCC promised, it released an initial version of its updated broadband maps on November 18. The pre-production maps display specific location-level information about broadband services available throughout the country. Both the Commission and broadband associations call them “significantly improved” maps compared to the census block level data previously collected.  An accurate map is key as the NTIA prepares to disperse broadband deployment allocations to states by its goal of June 30. Congress mandated that NTIA use the FCC’s updated maps to distribute some $65 billion in broadband deployment grants to avoid over-building. Continue Reading

FCC Hears Network Resiliency Improving After Storms

By Leslie Stimson, Inside Towers Washington Bureau Chief

Experts speaking at an FCC hearing on ways to improve wireless resiliency through better coordination with the power sector during disasters agree communication between the two groups has improved over the past few years. But they say more can be done. Liberty Mobile CEO in Puerto Rico Najo Khoury said in contrast to Hurricane Maria, which was a Category Five storm in 2017, and had a devastating wind and water impact, Hurricane Fiona was a Category One and the damage came from unprecedented rainfall. “The network did not experience significant damage from wind or rain. Nevertheless we incurred [$12 million] in increased costs due to widespread and prolonged power outages which prevented customers from using our resources,” he said. Continue Reading