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Welcome Back To The Wireless Messaging News 5G Is A Big DealI believe the Special Edition that I sent out earlier this week was the best written and most informative of all the issues from the last 16 years of publishing The Wireless Messaging News. — Thanks to Ben Dickens of Blooston, Mordkofsky, Dickens, Duffy & Prendergast, LLP and others. So . . . more interesting items on 5G are included this week. Who would have ever thought that there would already be a 5G mini-cell site on the block I grew up on — in this small country town in Southern Illinois?
The music video this week is from Brazil. While listening to it I remembered the wonderful food in Brazil, so Instead of a THOUGHT FOR THE WEEK I included info about Feijoada the national dish of Brazil. It is my favorite meal and I will be serving it to guests next Wednesday evening. RSVP! We need your help. This is probably the only remaining news source about paging and wireless messaging.
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NO POLITICS HERE This doesn't mean that nothing is ever published here that mentions a US political party—it just means that the editorial policy of this newsletter is to remain neutral on all political issues. We don't take sides.
A new issue of the Wireless Messaging Newsletter is posted on the web each week. A notification goes out by e-mail to subscribers on most Fridays around noon central US time. The notification message has a link to the actual newsletter on the web. That way it doesn’t fill up your incoming e-mail account. There is no charge for subscription and there are no membership restrictions. Readers are a very select group of wireless industry professionals, and include the senior managers of many of the world’s major Paging and Wireless Messaging companies. There is an even mix of operations managers, marketing people, and engineers — so I try to include items of interest to all three groups. It’s all about staying up-to-date with business trends and technology. We are having a cold spell in Southern, Illinois I regularly get readers’ comments, so this newsletter has become a community forum for the Paging, and Wireless Messaging communities. You are welcome to contribute your ideas and opinions. Unless otherwise requested, all correspondence addressed to me is subject to publication in the newsletter and on my web site. I am very careful to protect the anonymity of those who request it. TIME TO HUDDLE UP I spend the whole week searching the INTERNET for news that I think may be of interest to you — so you won’t have to. This newsletter is an aggregator — a service that aggregates news from other news sources. You can help our community by sharing any interesting news that you find.
Editorial Opinion pieces present only the opinions of the author. They do not necessarily reflect the views of any of advertisers or supporters. This newsletter is independent of any trade association. I don't intend to hurt anyone's feelings, but I do freely express my own opinions.
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Cornucopia The most popular model — so far — has been one made from a Horn of Plenty hammered-brass planter that came from India — like this: In stock at the The Owl’s Nest , 2006 Kelty Road, Franktown, Colorado 80116. |
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5G Networks and the Future of Wireless INTERNET by Bookmark Team What is 5G Wireless Technology?The new generation of 5G aims to achieve super-fast download speeds, high reliability, and extremely low latency. Perhaps more interestingly, the new capabilities of 5G wireless will make mobile competitive with wired broadband networks, and bring wireless first strategies to completely new markets. Wireless telecommunication is always driving forward in search of the next great thing. Presently, the 5th generation of wireless technology developing will deliver super-fast and ultra-reliable new digital features. 5G network speeds promise that the digital world is set to become wireless first. The technology’s promise of speed and reliability will transform the way that data moves across industries that are ripe for digital disruption. 5G, also known as fifth-generation cellular wireless, is the fifth iteration in wireless technology (following 4G or the fourth generation). The defining characteristic that sets each generation apart is their “data transmission speed” or the speed at which data is transmitted over a network. As each generation is launched, the speed that data can be transmitted becomes faster, meaning 5G will have the fastest data transmission speeds over any of the previous generations. It will also provide users with not only greater speed but also be more responsive and allow more devices to be connected at one time. The potential of the first generation of wireless networks was unknown at its launch. Those analog voice networks were remarkable achievements for the time; even without any of the additional features we now take for granted. The innovations that followed in the nineties made it possible to encrypt transmissions for voice and data. Since that time, 3G and 4G LTE have evolved wireless networks along a trend of increasing features and capacity to the present day. Now, with the introduction of 5G technology, wireless is set to expand beyond mobile telecommunications. It is the natural progression from previous iterations. The power and capacity of the technologies that underlie 5G endow it with the potential to be much more than just a new mobile data standard. When will 5G be available?The question of 5G availability still has no definitive answer. Mobile phone carriers plan to roll out the first 5G wireless services incrementally in 2019. However, Apple’s iPhone will not support 5G until at least 2020. While some of the features of the 5G network can be rolled out on existing 4G infrastructures, they will not achieve the full benefit until the carriers make substantial investments in new equipment and network fiber. So, truly innovative services that take full advantage of higher 5G speeds may not be available until late 2020. How fast is 5G?5G allows access to the higher end of the RF spectrum, which will make it possible to have download speeds of up to 1 GBPS indoors and 300 MBPS outside. The wireless service providers plan to achieve this by deploying a dense network of extremely high-frequency antennas. Soon there will be sub-millimeter antennas attached to existing towers, lampposts, buildings, and any other high point within reach. What the blisteringly fast 5G network speeds means for consumers is moving massive files, very fast. For example, users will be able to stream several 4K movies at once or download a full-length cinematic film in half a minute or less. Fortunately, the gains in efficiency and utilization will help to offset the cost of the new infrastructure. Greater energy efficiency means cooler operating temperatures, hence less energy expended on active cooling for base station equipment resulting in lower costs. The need for large amounts of capital to invest in new infrastructure gives wireless service providers strong incentives to exploit new opportunities and business models. This, in turn, will drive the adoption of 5G beyond mobile wireless, and in pursuit of wireless home INTERNET customers, edge computing, and machine-to-machine communication. The additional revenue will help to justify the capital investment that makes 5G possible . The Benefits and Effects of 5G Networks5G speed and fidelity will reduce latency and increase reliability, facilitating critical control for remote industrial, medical, and vehicle safety applications. In addition to enhanced mobile broadband, it will also enable more simultaneous connections to networks. Finally, 5G will provide broadband access to fixed sites, where wired solutions are not economically viable. McKinsey predicts a host of broad economic benefits to all parties in the communications value chain. Local governments, equipment manufacturers and installers, backhaul providers, Over-The-Top service providers, and handset manufacturers will all benefit by contributing to the creation of new hardware, software, and content that will become possible at 5G network speeds. It is predicted that 5G will support 22 million jobs and contribute $12.3 trillion to the global economy by 2035. The result will be the transformation of traditional bricks and mortar industries as they invest in new digital infrastructure. The near future promises to bring new uses that have not begun to emerge at this point, but which will be evident once the technology has matured. As new hardware rolls out it will help service providers keep up with emerging technologies such as IoT, make it possible to get the most value and functionality from new tech. 5G is the telecom industry initiative to build on existing data transfer technology and keep pace with the demand for wireless broadband connections. It is not, however, just the smartphone market that will draw on the high data rate capacity of 5G. The goal is an eventual standard that supports data rates of ten gigabits to smartphones and any other device that employs wireless for data. New business models for wireless will emerge as 5G wireless grows to dominance, in addition to those that are already available on 4G networks. Reliable and fast connections mean that the gigabyte-sized files of movies, games, and VR will download quickly. The new capacity will support autonomous vehicles, streaming 4K videos, mixed reality, and the high-density concentrations of IoT devices . 5G INTERNET Networks at HomeOne of the goals of 5G is that it should be competitive or ultimately replace the fastest alternatives. The primary competitors are broadband INTERNET fiber networks, which make the final connections with customers by Wi-Fi. Chromecast Home and Google Fiber locations, promise Gigabit speeds. Fixed wireless 5G that can match or exceed the capacity of Home Chromecast broadband landlines will bring the benefits of broadband to places that presently have poor INTERNET availability. Additionally, in locations that do not yet have fiber, 5G wireless home INTERNET will be a very competitive alternative for consumer broadband . Pushing Infrastructure to The EdgeChange is coming to cloud computing as 5G expands the computation infrastructure at the edges. The edges of networks will have much more power available to handle critical computing tasks. The time taken to transmit to the Cloud storage center is time lost because mission-critical applications run fastest when they are as close to the user as possible. Rather than sending data to distant data centers, cell towers will have the capabilities to transmit from one local machine to another. Collecting data and processing it at the edge saves the lost time spent communicating with the Cloud. The Future of 5GLow Latency to Open The PossibilitiesThe Cloud will still provide storage and process lower priority data functions such as SaaS applications. The rising demand for hardware will drive down the cost of computing devices and specialized chips. The commoditization of mobile phone and graphics chips shows what is likely to happen to the vision, VR, and AI chips in the near future. High-speed data and low latency change everything. Applications and use cases become possible that were too technically demanding previously. Augmented reality, autonomous vehicles, and remotely managed heavy equipment become real possibilities. Advanced Automotive AutomationThe high data rates of 5G mean that Augmented Reality (AR) and Virtual Reality (VR) applications will work seamlessly and without glitches. Self-driving cars will have all the computing power they require without the latency of communicating with remote cloud servers. Self-driving vehicles need information in fast-moving traffic, and the computing capabilities to make correct decisions without any latency. Estimates of how much data will come from production model self-driving cars vary wildly. However, the expectation is that each car will work with Terabytes and require the supporting computational resources that will respond in the millisecond time frame. So when there are millions of self-driving cars parked in communities across the country, each with the power of a small data center, that processing power can be shared or sold for other computational activities that are sensitive to latency, such as augmented reality . Remote Mission-Critical Control CapabilitiesSkilled operators and technicians will be able to operate devices from anywhere in the world, remain clear of hazardous environments, and apply the utmost skills and knowledge, exactly where it is required. Remote control of industrial robots makes it possible to put them in remote locations such as construction sites and mining operations more safely. Telemedicine, remote consultations, and robotic surgery become feasible when 5G eliminates latency and provides reliable mobile connections. The extreme capacity of 5G makes remote medicine a reality. Files such as x-rays cannot be compressed because it creates artifacts that undermine the ability of clinicians to diagnose diseases from faint traces on x-ray images. Remote surgery will be more practical with reliable and fast connections. Hospitals will benefit from IoT and the high density of connections permitted by 5G. Medical devices crowded into small spaces will still connect without the risk of running out of bandwidth . Massive Machine to Machine IoTThe INTERNET of Things (IoT) is proliferating at a blistering pace, and the free-range nature of IoT devices means that a high density of busy devices seeking to phone home. The potential data traffic could be even higher as machines talk to one another continuously via 5G wireless network connections. Edge computing is a powerful resource that defines the architecture of machine-to-machine communication and control. The network infrastructure gives IoT devices and sensors the ability to monitor and control the surrounding network resources to monitor and manage data. Too many Machines to CountAccording to Andreessen Horowitz partner Peter Levine, trillions of machines will soon work together and keep the computation at the edge, close at hand. Machine-to-machine automation will change in response to the vast quantities of data generated by these countless new applications, sensors, and devices. When so many machines connect to wireless networks, it will drive the adoption of machine learning tools to manage the data, Levine says. These machines will demand a scope of management that will not be possible to address in any other way. In critical applications, the time loop between sensing environmental conditions and obstacles, making inferences from the data, and taking appropriate action will have to be as tight and agile as possible. Machine-to-machine wireless data management capabilities will help to make Levine’s prediction a practical reality. Planning for a future beyond 5GThe initial plans for 6G are already on the drawing board and in negotiation. At present, plans to move beyond 5G are still a developing process to implement the most advanced technologies as they emerge. For the 2030s and beyond we will see networks that make full use of the Terahertz range of radio frequencies. What it is that will become 6G, if that will be the official term for it, is yet to be determined. Research is beginning into systems that operate in the 100 GHz to 1 THz range. Such networks could potentially handle many more simultaneous connections and hundreds or even thousands of times the data that early 5G is expected to handle. This expansive capacity of 5G wireless networks will be vital to make the most of new technologies as they mature and prevent bottlenecks if devices proliferate in the ways that we can reasonably expect. |
Source: | VerizonInternet.com — THE BOOKMARK |
Paging Transmitters 150/900 MHz The RFI High Performance Paging Transmitter is designed for use in campus, city, state and country-wide paging systems. Designed for use where reliable simulcast systems where RF signal overlap coverage is critical.
Built-in custom interface for Prism-IPX ipBSC Base Controller for remote control, management and alarm reporting.
Prism-IPX Systems LLC. 11175 Cicero Dr., Alpharetta, GA 30022 Back To PagingStill The Most Reliable Protocol For Wireless Messaging!
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GLENAYRE INFRASTRUCTUREI would like to recommend Easy Solutions for Support of all Glenayre Paging Equipment. This Texas company is owned and operated by Vaughan Bowden. I have known Vaughan for over 35 years. Without going into a long list of his experience and qualifications, let me just say that he was the V.P. of Engineering at PageNet which was—at that time—the largest paging company in the world. So Vaughan knows Paging. GTES is no longer offering support contracts. GTES was the original group from Vancouver that was setup to offer support to customers that wanted to continue with the legacy Glenayre support. Many U.S. customers chose not to use this service because of the price and the original requirement to upgrade to version 8.0 software (which required expensive hardware upgrades, etc.). Most contracts ended as of February 2018. If you are at all concerned about future support of Glenayre products, especially the “king of the hill” the GL3000 paging control terminal, I encourage you to talk to Vaughan about a service contract and please tell him about my recommendation. |
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Text messaging is on the verge of a major transformation–here’s why you should care (Reader Forum)By Oscar Werner, CEO, Sinch on APRIL 8, 2019 Since its debut on the market in the 1990s, SMS has achieved global domination as the fastest, most reliable mode of communication for information exchange around the world. Despite its ubiquity and immediacy, the format hasn’t changed significantly in its almost 30 years of existence — but that’s about to shift in a big way with the advent of Rich Communication Services (RCS). RCS, a GSMA-endorsed protocol, enables rich multimedia (video, audio, high-res images, and of course GIFs), improved group chat functionality, read receipts and typing indicators, the ability for businesses to send real-time updates, and more. That’s the technical side of it. The big picture is that RCS is the biggest upgrade for mobile messaging, since, well, ever. It’s SMS, super-charged; think iMessage-like functionality without the need of for a specific device or a third-party app. Here’s why businesses should be paying attention: RCS will become universal. The reason is twofold. SMS is a proven smash hit, and RCS delivers 10x the value of SMS. The second reason, is a result of the current momentum. When we see Google, along with the largest operators in the world and thousands of creatives, brands, and various players in the mobile ecosystem experimenting with use cases using a technology that is 10x better than an already established smash hit, it’s just undeniable. Unlike platforms such as WhatsApp or Facebook Messenger, RCS is native to a device’s built-in messaging app, meaning there is absolutely no friction for end users to adopt the technology — and although RCS has been around since 2007, Google’s 2015 acquisition of RCS-enabled provider Jibe was the shift that majorly signaled RCS as the next evolution of mobile communications. Since then, the tech giant has been steadily rolling out RCS to all Google devices, messaging platforms, and Google Fi, with 2019 its most aggressive push yet. While Android currently holds the majority of the RCS market, Apple support for RCS will obviously be a very big driver in high iPhone penetration countries. In addition, all top five US and European operators support RCS and want Apple to join, and given that Apple thrives on delivering strong use cases, our judgment is that Apple is likely follow suit. Overall, the future for RCS is bright — and profitable: the market is positioned to be worth $16B by 2023 and that’s excluding all the potential new revenue streams related to advertising and search. RCS will replace apps. An RCS message has basically the same functionality as an app but it doesn’t require a download. Instead it’s delivered to your native message inbox when you need it. As most enterprises know, it’s only the top 10-20% of their customers that bother downloading their app. RCS gives them the possibility to offer the same functionality to the remaining 80-90%. Imagine, for example, being at an airport and having your flight canceled with an airline you don’t often fly with. RCS messaging can provide you with a message for rebooking your flight and a free meal voucher in the same message. Customers can receive excellent customer service at a fraction of today’s cost to the airline. We project that a significant portion of app ad web development budgets will soon move to messaging. RCS will replace phone calls. With RCS, messaging becomes conversational and your inbox becomes searchable. Customers can simply search for the brand or “chatbot” they want to interact with in their inbox. No need to find a phone number or email address. All conversation history with the brand is saved for later reference. Given that preference from younger generations is increasingly to use messaging apps over phone calls for communication this is a big thing. It’s also the easiest format to automate, and therefore the lowest cost per contact for the brand. RCS is measurable. RCS gives businesses one of the most crucial ingredients for implementing successful marketing tactics: more data. SMS had some limited trackable metrics — enough to show how powerful the channel is — but in addition to these, RCS can provide real-time feedback about when messages are not only delivered but also read and when the customer is actively typing. Getting more transparency into these metrics will allow brands to inject more immediacy and usefulness into the conversation, prompting customers to engage faster and more frequently. RCS brings new opportunities to engage and connect. SMS is already an all-star marketing channel, with stats that leave email and social in the dust — 98% open rates (according to Mobile Marketing Association), 45% response rates (according to Sinch), and a direct connection to the device individuals use most in their daily life. That’s especially impressive, considering that SMS functions exclusively as a push channel and offers the ability to send only 160 characters in text format. RCS sees dramatic CX improvement, allowing communications to be light years more reciprocal and dynamic. Here are just a couple examples:
Here’s the caveat: The new bells and whistles provided by RCS are incredibly exciting, but when you strip it down to the fundamentals, mobile works because it is one of the most intimate and direct access points to your customers — especially since the channel has historically been used for interaction with family, friends, and loved ones. This is a good thing! That means customers are already psychologically primed towards receptivity when your campaign lands in their inbox. However, understanding this context, it is even more imperative businesses treat their access with respect. Messaging has the highest potential to increase customer satisfaction but, when used disrespectfully, it also has the highest potential to decrease customer satisfaction. Spamming customers on their phone will end up hugely counterproductive and can potentially damage the relationship. Thoughtfully think through which of your business needs would most strategically leverage the power of mobile messaging. Real-time updates on a service? A reminder to schedule or confirm an appointment? A notification that your home delivery will arrive in 1 hour with an option to reschedule? RCS simply adds new dimensions and functionality. At its heart, mobile communications is best served by being as authentic, personal, and helpful as possible. |
Source: | RCRWirelessNews |
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INTERNET Protocol Terminal The IPT accepts INTERNET or serial messaging using various protocols and can easily convert them to different protocols, or send them out as paging messages. An ideal platform for hospitals, on-site paging applications, or converting legacy systems to modern protocols.
Additional/Optional Features
Prism-IPX Systems LLC. 11175 Cicero Dr., Alpharetta, GA 30022 |
Paging Data Receiver PDR-4 The PDR-4 is a multi-function paging data receiver that decodes paging messages and outputs them via the serial port, USB or Ethernet connectors. Designed for use with Prism-IPX ECHO software Message Logging Software to receive messages and log the information for proof of transmission over the air, and if the data was error free.
Prism-IPX Systems LLC. 11175 Cicero Dr., Alpharetta, GA 30022 |
Wireless Network Planners
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Remote AB Switches ABX-1 switches are often used at remote transmitter sites to convert from old, outdated and unsupported controllers to the new modern Prism-IPX ipBSC base station controllers. Remotely switch to new controllers with GUI commands. ABX-1 ABX-3 switches are widely used for enabling or disabling remote equipment and switching I/O connections between redundant messaging systems. ABX-3 Common Features:
Prism-IPX Systems LLC. 11175 Cicero Dr., Alpharetta, GA 30022 |
Leavitt Communications |
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Are School Parents Getting the Wrong Info From EMF’ers?By Jim Fryer, Managing Editor, Inside Towers
The recent activities at a school in Ripon, California toward a Sprint tower and its perceived cancer-causing RF emissions have gotten traction with parents across the country, having been cited in zoning meetings in Aurora, Colorado and Germantown, Tennessee as reported by Inside Towers. Four students and three teachers at the Weston Elementary School have been diagnosed with cancer. The backlash has been strong enough for Sprint to agree to remove the tower. “We do understand and respect the views of the community. We’re committed to being good neighbors,” Adrienne Norton of Sprint Corporate Communications said last week. Although Norton added, “It’s actually operating at less than one percent, hundreds of times below federal limits.” The Ripon Unified School District, in response to the claims, has had the site tested twice over the past two years with results backing Sprint’s claim and showing the tower well under FCC standards. The latest study by William Hammett, P.E. of Hammett & Edison, a consulting engineering firm in San Francisco, concluded the following in late January of this year:
The Weston parents hired their own consultant, Eric Windheim, of Windheim EMF , an “Electro Magnetic Radiation Specialist” with credentials from the International Institute for Building Biology & Ecology who found widely different readings, prompting him to say, “he wouldn’t send his kids to that school.” On his website, Windheim, certified by the aforementioned New Mexico-based “institute” in 2015, after “12 months, four certification seminars, 21 courses of study and 14,000 air miles” touts his effectiveness at lowering EMF in the home. Using his “smart meter,” Windheim said he recently, “lowered a 10 mG magnetic field found on the pillows of the master bed to a very low and safe level of .25 mG. It is a real challenge, a lot of fun and clients feel better as the result!” “He’s a tin hat,” said Lawrence Behr of LBA in an interview with Inside Towers, “part of the EMF Cult crowd.” Behr is the President of LBA Group , a 56-year old engineering consulting firm and is also Director of the National Association of Radio and Telecommunications Engineers. Behr said Windheim’s results were inaccurate due to both using substandard meter-reading equipment and poor extrapolation of his findings. “He didn’t understand the math much less the instrument,” Behr said. “His math was off, and once it was corrected, it comes out to fitting FCC standards. But this is coming from a guy who has been quoted to say, ‘he doesn’t believe in FCC standards’, since he has his own EMRS non-FCC recognized version.” Behr said Windheim’s meter readings (from a meter costing around $1,200, about one tenth the price of that used by LBA and Hammett & Edison) showed spikes of 3500MHz. Sprint, Behr pointed out, operates all of their sites between 1800 and 2500 MHz. and that Windheim was likely incorporating a WiFi signal into the mix, which can add 10-to-15 percent to the readings and possibly more, depending on the time of day (parents picking up kids at closing, etc.). Behr and his staff use two kinds of meters, the NARDA and EMCTD precision RF survey meters, which have a weighted scale that tells you what the percentage is from various sources. “It’s a very unprofessional study,” Behr said of Windheim’s work, adding those findings, if and when they are brought up in court, have very little or no chance of succeeding.
Cancer Story Out of California Hits National TV and International PapersBy Jim Fryer, Managing Editor, Inside Towers The Weston Elementary cancer story continues to find its way into new and bigger media outlets including the London Daily Mail. The parents have rallied around and referenced an engineer, Eric Windheim, whom they hired whose credentials were examined and critiqued in Inside Towers’ Thursday story “Are School Parents Getting the Wrong Info From EMF’ers?” Last Thursday, CBS This Morning aired “Cell tower behind cancer scare at 1 school?” The parents, understandably teary eyed over their respective sons’ unexplained illnesses, were juxtaposed with pictures of the site which Sprint has since agreed to remove. CBS talked to Sprint’s Network Project Manager Dharma Nordell who said three tests have shown the tower is operating 100 times below the federal limit. “Does Sprint believe that tower could be causing cancer?” the CBS correspondent asked her. “Absolutely not,” Nordell said. “It is not a safety concern to the community but we do hear the community's concerns, so we're quickly working to relocate the tower.” “My heart goes out to these families of children afflicted by cancer. It is natural that they would look for an explanation for such a painful tragedy, and we hope they find the root cause since there is no evidence that the tower posed any issue,” said WIA President and CEO Jonathan Adelstein. “The Federal Communications Commission, the leading national authority on regulating radio frequency, sets the limits to which this tower adhered, based on sound science, indicating the tower had no health effects.” CBS News also had their medical contributor and oncologist Dr. David Agus look at the case and he said the number of cases warrants further investigation. “Whenever you hear of cases of cancer in a child obviously that itself is alarming. When there’s several cases in one school… that’s even more alarming,” Agus said. But he said people exposed to RF waves at normal levels have not been found to be at higher risk for developing cancer. The story has also appeared in Newsweek ’s March 13 issue headlined: “Parents Concerned As Fourth Child Diagnosed With Cancer While Attending California School With Cell Phone Tower On Campus.” In the article, one of the distraught mothers said the school district cited an, “obsolete American Cancer Society study” as the reasoning for the school’s inactivity. Eric Windheim, EMF expert hired by the parents told CBS Sacramento in the Newsweek article said, “I wouldn’t send my kids there at all, it absolutely is dangerous. Children are still developing and their cells are still being divided. It’s the worst possible time in their life to be exposed.” The London Daily Mail of April 5 made the following points:
Inside Towers is waiting to hear back from Ripon Unified School District on their efforts to test for other causes.
NAB Show 2019 5G Means Building Small Cells ‘Closer to the Street’By Leslie Stimson, Inside Towers Washington Bureau Chief Experts from Crown Castle, Intel and Samsung discussed the implications of 5G at the NAB Show Wednesday. “Lots of companies forget there’s a network between you and content,” said Lynne Comp, VP, Data Center Group and GM, Visual Cloud Division for Intel. “The edge can become an opportunity for new value-added and for sales. As the network transforms to operate more like a cloud, you can add additional applications,” she added. Comp clarified 5G is not just one network; users can assign different slices of the network to employ different characteristics, according to the Intel executive. A dynamic network can ensure users would have ultra-high bandwidth for video streaming, for example. “5G is happening now. Billions of dollars will be invested,” said Chistopher Levendos, VP Network Engineering and Operations, Crown Castle. He said there’s more investment in towers, small cells and fiber, because existing infrastructure can’t carry all the needed data. Overall, more than $275 billion will be spent on spectrum, fiber and small cell deployment, Accenture estimates. “We need millions more feet of fiber, thousands of small cells,” attached to light poles or buildings, “anywhere in the street corridor. This is going on now and [will be] intensely for the next couple of years in U.S. cities,” Levendos said. 5G infrastructure builds on 4G infrastructure, he explained. “What changes with 5G is bringing infrastructure closer to the street.” He described the small cell buildup as “intense” for the next three to five years. “5G is a fast pipe, and a really big pipe,” said Taher Behbehani, SVP/GM Mobile B2B Division, Samsung Electronics U.S. He described being at a baseball game and connecting company cameras to a 5G network. He downloaded video to his Samsung Galaxy S10 5G phone, and was able to switch from camera to camera, angle to angle, during the game. “The combination of low latency and big pipe allows me to send video to the cloud and back to my phone, so I see my own version of the game,” Behbehani said. It becomes a different experience if you add augmented reality, according to the Samsung executive. “Now there’s a new broadcasting cloud, which can compensate for what I uploaded, and advertisers can make money. Many of the components exist now. If any of us want to capture [an] experience, we can make that more interesting and fresh,” he explained. Panel moderator Shelly Palmer, President/CEO, The Palmer Group, asked what use cases could occur for 5G. Behbehani said immediate applications will likely be B2B. “Because companies own their data and network, 5G allows them to streamline processing in the cloud, for example. Hopefully it makes life easier,” he said. |
Source: | Inside Towers newsletter | Courtesy of the editor of Inside Towers. |
BloostonLaw Newsletter |
Selected portions [sometimes more — sometimes less] of the BloostonLaw Telecom Update and/or the BloostonLaw Private Users Update — newsletters from the Law Offices of Blooston, Mordkofsky, Dickens, Duffy & Prendergast, LLP — are reproduced in this section of The Wireless Messaging News with kind permission from the firm. The firm's contact information is included at the end of this section of the newsletter.
FCC Form 499-Q Telecommunications Reporting Worksheet due May 1: All telecommunications common carriers that expect to contribute more than $10,000 to federal Universal Service Fund (USF) support mechanisms must file this quarterly form. See story below. BloostonLaw Contacts: Ben Dickens and Sal Taillefer. HeadlinesHouse Passes “Save the Internet Act” to Restore Net Neutrality RequirementsCongress passed a bill (H.R. 1644) today to essentially restore the Obama Administration net neutrality rules, after dealing with several proposed amendments. However, the legislation faces slim odds of making it through the Republican-controlled Senate, as Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) has already deemed the bill "dead on arrival". The Save the Internet Act passed the Democrat-controlled House 232-190 Wednesday, with only one Republican vote in favor. The 2015 net neutrality regulations barred Internet service providers like Verizon and AT&T from “throttling” online traffic, or from charging users for fast lane service. These regulations have been very politically charged since adopted. House lawmakers on Tuesday agreed to attach the two GOP amendments to the bill: one requiring a Government Accountability Office study on all companies' role in the INTERNET ecosystem, and another requiring the FCC to provide a list of which common carrier regulations the Commission would refrain from applying to broadband. FCC reaction to the bill was divided along party lines, as expected. FCC Chairman Pai promptly issued a statement concerning what he called “the so-called Save the INTERNET Act”: “This legislation is a big-government solution in search of a problem. The INTERNET is free and open, while faster broadband is being deployed across America. This bill should not and will not become law.” Democratic commissioner Jessica Rosenworcel took the contrary position: “Today, the United States House of Representatives voted to once again make net neutrality the law of the land. Their legislative effort gets right what the FCC got so wrong. When the agency rolled back net neutrality protections, it gave broadband providers the power to block websites, throttle services, and censor online content. This decision put the FCC on the wrong side of history, the wrong side of the law, and the wrong side of the American public.” FCC Issues Order on 2019 Tariff FilingsOn April 4, the FCC issued an Order establishing procedures for the 2019 filing of annual access charge tariffs and Tariff Review Plans (TRPs) for incumbent local exchange carriers (LECs) subject to price cap regulation, as well as rate-of-return incumbent LECs subject to sections 61.38 and 61.39 of the FCC’s rules. Per the Order, the following deadlines are established:
In addition, the Order (1) waives the July 1, 2019 effective date and sets a modified effective date of July 2, 2019, for the July 2019 annual access charge tariff filings made both on 15 days’ notice and on 7 days’ notice; (2) establishes the dates for filing petitions to suspend or reject an incumbent LEC’s tariff filing and replies to such petitions; (3) addresses service of the petitions and replies; (4) waives for 2019 the requirement that price cap incumbent LECs file a short form TRP; and (4) partially waives for the second quarter of 2019 the universal service contribution factor rule to allow incumbent LECs to charge the second quarter 2019 contribution factor until July 2, 2019, at which time they must begin charging the third quarter 2019 contribution factor. In the USF/ICC Transformation Order, the Commission adopted new rules requiring incumbent LECs to adjust, over a period of years, many of their switched access charges effective on July 1 of each of those years. The TRPs also implement these adjustments. BloostonLaw Contacts: Ben Dickens, Gerry Duffy, and Mary Sisak. FCC Announces Official Agenda for April MeetingOn April 5, the FCC issued the official Commission Meeting Agenda for the April Open Commission Meeting, which is currently scheduled for April 12:
Public drafts of each of these items are linked in the summaries above. One-page cover sheets are included in the public drafts to help summarize each item. Being drafts, these documents are not final and may be changed before final consideration. Open Meetings are streamed live at www.fcc.gov/live and can be followed on social media with #OpenMtgFCC. BloostonLaw Contacts: Ben Dickens, Gerry Duffy, and John Prendergast. Comments on Wireless E911 Location Accuracy Requirements are Due May 20On April 4, the FCC published in the Federal Register its Fourth Further Notice of Proposed Rulemaking on improving location accuracy requirements for mobile providers. Comments are due May 20, and reply comments are due June 18. Specifically, the FCC proposes to revise the rules to require Commercial Mobile Radio Service (CMRS) providers to deliver accurate vertical location information to Public Safety Answering points consistent with a metric of plus or minus three meters for wireless 911 calls placed from indoors. The Commission also seeks comment on this proposal as well as on alternatives to improve vertical location accuracy for wireless 911 calls made from multi-story buildings. BloostonLaw Contacts: John Prendergast and Cary Mitchell. Law & RegulationNew Reporting Requirements for Earth Stations Become Effective April 4; Filing Deadline Not Yet SetOn April 4, the FCC published in the Federal Register notification of approval by the Office of Management and Budget of certain provisions of the Order requesting additional information from operators in the fixed-satellite service (FSS). This Order was originally adopted in August of 2018. A filing deadline for the additional information, described below, is forthcoming. Specifically, operators with existing FSS space station licenses or grants of United States market access in the 3.7-4.2 GHz band (the C-band) are required to provide the following information:
For each transponder operating in the 3.7-4.2 GHz range that is operational and legally authorized to serve customers in the United States, for the most recent month, the following information is required:
The FCC is in the process of assessing how to make some portion of the C-band spectrum available for 5G advanced wireless operations. BloostonLaw Contacts: John Prendergast. Senate to Hold Broadband Mapping HearingOn April 10, U.S. Sen. Roger Wicker, R-Miss., chairman of the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation, will convene a hearing titled, “Broadband Mapping: Challenges and Solutions.” According to a press release, the hearing will examine the current state of the nation’s broadband maps, and evaluate the ongoing efforts within the federal government and private sector to collect more accurate broadband coverage data. The hearing also will examine ways to increase coordination among federal agencies that administer broadband deployment programs to ensure resources are targeted to unserved areas. The following witnesses are scheduled to provide testimony: Mr. Tim Donovan, Senior Vice President, Competitive Carriers Association; Mr. Mike McCormick, President, Mississippi Farm Bureau Federation; Mr. Mike Oblizalo, Vice President and General Manager, Hood Canal Communications; Mr. Jonathan Spalter, President and Chief Executive Officer, United States Telecom Association; and Mr. Chip Strange, Vice President, Strategic Initiatives, Ookla. BloostonLaw Contacts: Ben Dickens and Sal Taillefer. IndustryVerizon Reportedly Activates 5G Network in Parts of Chicago and MinneapolisOn April 3, Verizon issued a press release announcing that it has turned on its 5G network in “select areas” of Chicago and Minneapolis, a week ahead of schedule. In order to use the service, customers need a Motorola Moto z3 with the 5G “moto mod,” a $350 attachment that snaps onto the back of the z3. The service is an additional $10 per month on any existing unlimited plan. According to Verizon, 5G coverage in Chicago is concentrated in areas of the West Loop and the South Loop, around landmarks like Union Station, Willis Tower, The Art Institute of Chicago, Millennium Park and The Chicago Theatre. In Minneapolis, service is concentrated in the Downtown area, including Downtown West and Downtown East, as well as inside and around U.S. Bank Stadium, and around landmarks like the Minneapolis Convention Center, the Minneapolis Central Library, the Mill City Museum, Target Center and First Avenue venues. FCC Office of Economics and Analytics Releases First Working PaperOn April 5, the FCC’s recently-established Office of Economics and Analytics released its first working paper titled “The Organization of Economists in Regulatory Agencies: Does Structure Matter?” According to a Press Release, the paper concludes [not so surprisingly?] that organizational consolidation of economists into a single unit, much like the arrangement of the new OEA, can provide more independent and higher quality economic analysis within regulatory agencies. “This Working Paper provides data, analysis, and insights that will strengthen the FCC’s ability to make effective use of OEA economists and analysts,” Chairman Pai said. “With the release of this Working Paper, OEA has established a strong foundation from which to ensure that the economic analysis underlying FCC policies benefits consumers and the economy. Its release also represents an important and concrete step toward building a culture of open inquiry and big-thinking among the agency’s terrific staff.” The Working Paper was written by Jerry Ellig and Catherine Konieczny. Dr. Ellig is former Chief Economist of the FCC and a Research Professor at the Regulatory Studies Center, George Washington University. Ms. Konieczny served as an intern at the FCC, and was assigned to assist Dr. Ellig. She is currently an economist at the Standards Evaluation and Analysis Division, United States Coast Guard. The paper is available at https://docs.fcc.gov/public/attachments/DOC-356879A1.pdf . DeadlinesMAY 1: FCC FORM 499-Q, TELECOMMUNICATIONS REPORTING WORKSHEET. All telecommunications common carriers that expect to contribute more than $10,000 to federal Universal Service Fund (USF) support mechanisms must file this quarterly form. The FCC has modified this form in light of its recent decision to establish interim measures for USF contribution assessments. The form contains revenue information from the prior quarter plus projections for the next quarter. Form 499-Q relates only to USF contributions. It does not relate to the cost recovery mechanisms for the Telecommunications Relay Service (TRS) Fund, the North American Numbering Plan Administration (NANPA), and the shared costs of local number portability (LNP), which are covered in the annual form (Form 499-A) that was due April 1. BloostonLaw Contacts: Ben Dickens and Gerry Duffy. MAY 31: FCC FORM 395, EMPLOYMENT REPORT. Common carriers, including wireless carriers, with 16 or more full-time employees must file their annual Common Carrier Employment Reports (FCC Form 395) by May 31. This report tracks carrier compliance with rules requiring recruitment of minority employees. Further, the FCC requires all common carriers to report any employment discrimination complaints they received during the past year. That information is also due on May 31. The FCC encourages carriers to complete the discrimination report requirement by filling out Section V of Form 395, rather than submitting a separate report. BloostonLaw Contact: Richard Rubino. Calendar At-a-Glance April June July
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LETTERS TO THE EDITOR |
Looking at the 5G article, there are other issues that are going to have to be solved as part of this process, and did not seem to be fully addressed in the article. In addition to the shared and unlicensed nature of most of the 5G bandwidth, many other elements of setting up such a network would also need to be shared as well. Examples of this include: First, a handoff process between the new 5G networks, and the older 4G or less longer range networks would be required for full mobile coverage. This is because of the short distance range of 5G, any handset that is mobile would need to be able to fall back on the existing 4G or less service whenever the handset moves between areas of 5G service. At least in the beginning, I would guess that very dense areas such as sports venues will be chosen as the initial sites for placement of 5G. Smaller areas with few subscribers may in fact never be served by 5G, especially in rural areas. Without fallback, large areas of no service would exist. Also, new entrants must either have their own 4G or less network, or rent space from one of the existing ones in order to have service away from the 5G base stations. Second, the backhaul network to each 5G base station equipment would also need to be shared, and this backhaul network would have to become very extensive when compared to the existing backhaul used for 4G with longer range base stations. Third, the total site leases for equipment needed to cover a given area would be great. Because of the short range of 5G, each building might require many 5G devices, including the associated backhaul connections. The need to install, and lease sites for all these short range devices and their cost would also need to be shared by those networks that use them. Fourth, the technical issues with maintaining a persistent data connection when the handset moves from node to node will be quite challenging. Features that were built into IPv6 for mobility that have not really been well tested will be challenged in such an environment. Fifth, the question of who owns and controls the total network will be up in the air. It would seem to fit best into an area that already has municipal fiber, as the backhaul issue may turn out to be the biggest issue with widespread 5G deployment. 5G is also turning into a marketing and labeling issue. Not all 5G deployments will in fact be the shared network model that the article outlines. As an example, T-Mobile intends to offer "5G" on its new 600 MHz spectrum in 2020. This "5G" will not be the type described in the article, as it will take place on exclusive licensed frequencies in band 71 that are not shared. Since the service will be on 600 MHz, it will have a range equal or better than their existing cell sites, but will not have the bandwidth of true "5G" described in the article since these channels are limited to 20 MHz max, and will actually run at 10 MHz. AT&T has been advertising "5Ge", which is nothing more than a re-branded form of "4G" using a "5G" marketing name. Others like Sprint seem to want to use the technology to provide fixed wireless INTERNET service to businesses or residences which of course eliminates the need for handoffs between base stations or backup access to 4G or less. I wonder how the current early true shared 5G deployments will deal with these issues. Verizon seems to have already set up 5G in a couple of cities on their own. I am not sure if this service is the service described in the article, or another re-branding of the "5G" name like that of T-Mobile on licensed channels. If it is shared, will they be willing to give up primary control of these networks when other companies wish to be able to use that 5G equipment as well? Or, will action from the FCC or otherwise be required to try to get them to play ball together. Albert Erdmann |
Current member or former member of these organizations.
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The above is just like the old men who have stickers on the rear window of their pickup trucks.
THOUGHT FOR THE WEEK |
This goes with Brazilian Music
The National Dish of Brazil
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MUSIC VIDEO SELECTION OF THE WEEK |
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Source: | YouTube |
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