The Federal Communications Commission has granted the application of Elon Musk's Starlink (SpaceX) satellite broadband company to deliver consumer and business broadband access to planes, boats and automobiles. 

But the regulator said SpaceX must accept any interference from incumbent or future users of the 12-GHz band — and there will likely be a few of those — and can cause no interference of its own to those services.

SpaceX had argued that granting the application would allow it to provide high-quality, low-latency broadband service while still complying with FCC rules and spectrum protections. The FCC appeared to be convinced, saying it agreed with SpaceX that it would be in the public interest to do so. The agency also approved a related on-the-go broadband petition by another satellite broadband provider, Kepler.

The FCC is encouraging low-earth-orbit geostationary satellite broadband systems as competition to existing internet service providers and as a way to reach places too uneconomical for wired ISPs to serve.

SpaceX had applied to deliver service on the go using the 12-GHz band for receive stations. SpaceX is currently trying to dissuade the FCC from allowing that satellite band to be shared with terrestrial wireless 5G, arguing it poses an unacceptable interference risk.

Dish Network, among a handful of others, had opposed the applications saying that neither SpaceX nor Kepler could show that their operations could comply with FCC rules. But the FCC said, “We agree with SpaceX and Kepler that their proposed … operations on an unprotected, nonharmful interference basis in the 12 GHz band will not materially impact the interference environment in that band.”

The FCC did impose some conditions. “These services, never before available, promise the potential for expanding reach to remote and rural areas and facilitating higher quality broadband services in the air, on the road, and on the water,” the commission said, adding, “We recognize, however, that the introduction of a potentially significant number of additional end users could affect the 12 GHz spectrum environment.”

Those conditions include that the authorization is granted on a “non-interference protected” basis, meaning it must take an interference punch, as explained above, but cannot dish one out. The FCC said the applications are subject to changes depending on how it finally resolves the 12-GHz 5G/WiFi sharing proceeding. ▪️

The FCC, backed by the Biden Justice Department, is telling a federal appeals court that it was reasonable for the commission to reclaim a swath of 5.9 GHz licensed vehicular communications spectrum for unlicensed WiFi, and it had the authority to do it.

That came in a brief filed with the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit.

The Intelligent Transportation Society of America and the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials sued the FCC over its unanimous decision and had sought an emergency stay from the court, which denied that request in August, meaning the underlying case proceeded.

Also Read: NCTA Tells FCC To Stay on Road to WiFi 5.9 GHz Sharing

The FCC voted unanimously under former FCC Chairman Ajit Pai to free up the lower 45 MHz of the 5.9 GHz band for wireless broadband while transitioning the remaining upper 30 MHz to the latest iteration of vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) communications, and cellular vehicle-to-everything (C-V2X) technology.

In its filing this week, the FCC said that its decision was reasonable and reasonably explained; that its repurposing excess spectrum to meet the burgeoning demand for unlicensed WiFi was in the public interest, and that it has the authority to repurpose spectrum and modify licenses.

On the issue reasonableness, the FCC said, there is "a pressing need for improved WiFi internet service and other unlicensed uses," and that the 5.9 GHz spectrum could be freed up "while also preserving ample capacity for present and anticipated vehicular-communications needs."

It said that was doable in part because vehicular communications have barely been employed in the band to date, while many of the anticipated uses for vehicle-to-vehicle communications have shifted to other technologies and spectrum bands.

On the other side of the coin, WiFi, which "barely existed" when V2V got the spectrum over two decades ago, "has exploded," the FCC said, driven in part by the rise in remote work and learning during and in the wake of the pandemic.

The FCC says it carefully balanced competing demands and exercised sound judgment using its spectrum-management authority.

Appeals courts generally give significant deference to regulatory agencies' subject matter expertise.

Wireless internet service providers are working on a “Climate Resilience” certification program based on protecting broadband plant against extreme weather events.

The Wireless Internet Service Providers Association (WISPA) said it has created a working group to develop climate-resilient best practices to protect "vulnerable internet and cloud access" in the public and private sectors from climate-related impacts.

“Industry must take a leadership role in developing proactive practices to take us from disaster recovery towards resilience,” WISPA president Claude Aiken said. He said that would be critical as climate-related events increase. “This will be a differentiator in the marketplace, equipping the industry with needed skills and know-how to meet mounting resiliency challenges that lie ahead.”

WISPA has tapped member David Theodore, chief technology officer of Climate Resilient Internet, to chair the working group.

According to the World Meteorological Association, the number of extreme weather disasters — drought, floods or hurricanes — has increased five-fold over the last 50 years, driven in part by climate change as well as improved reporting.

Reps. Mike Doyle (D-Pa.) and Doris Matsui (D-Calif.) have introduced a bill that would free up more spectrum for wireless broadband using a sharing approach.

The Spectrum Innovation Act (H.R. 5378) would free up midband spectrum for mobile broadband and authorize "opportunistic and other flexible uses."

It would make at least 200 MHz of spectrum in the 3.1-3.45 GHz band available for non-federal use (it is currently used by the Defense Department), shared federal and non-federal use, or a combination of the two, with an incentive payment to federal users for facilitating sharing. It also authorizes the president to “withdraw” any federal spectrum assignment to accommodate shared or non-Federal use so long as it does not compromise the federal user.

The reclaimed spectrum would be put up for auction. 

The bill would also require a study identifying even more frequencies in the band that could be freed up.

“[I]t’s essential to make as much spectrum as possible available for improved broadband service for consumers and to promote new, innovative uses of our airwaves,” Doyle, chairman of the House Communications Subcommittee, said of the bill. “The Spectrum Innovation Act would do both.“  

”We stand at a pivotal moment in the development and deployment of next generation networks; the Spectrum Innovation Act will unleash the economic potential of this valuable midband spectrum and give us the tools necessary to meet the communications challenges of tomorrow,” Matsui said.

“The Spectrum Innovation Act of 2021 demonstrates a balanced approach to making critical midband spectrum in the 3.1-3.45 GHz band available for commercial use,” NCTA-The Internet & Television Association said.

“In consultation with relevant federal partners, the legislation would allow this band to be modeled after the successful 3.5-GHz Citizens Broadband Radio Service shared-use approach, which has been proven to protect the important federal uses of the band, garnered an unprecedented number of auction participants and supports a wide range of use cases,” NCTA said.

Charter Communications launched its much-awaited Spectrum Mobile wireless services on June 30, offering customers flexible data pricing plans similar to Comcast’s Xfinity Mobile.

That makes sense given the Charter service stems from the same Verizon Mobile Virtual Network Operator (MVNO) agreement that is the basis for Comcast’s Xfinity Mobile service, which was launched last year. 

The 4G LTE Spectrum Mobile service is connected to the cable operator’s WiFi hotspots across the country, according to Charter.

Related: Charter Eyes June 30 Debut for Spectrum Mobile Launch: Report

Charter and Comcast formed a joint venture in April to develop and design backend systems for both mobile products. 

Related: Comcast, Charter Form Mobile Platform Partnership 

Customers can pay for data in two ways – a flat $45 per month, per line fee for unlimited data; or they can pay by usage. The "By the Gig" plan is the only area Spectrum Mobile differs from the XFinity Mobile product – Charter charges $14/GB per month on that plan, while Comcast charges $12/GB. Both Spectrum Mobile plans include free nationwide talk and text.

Like XFinity Mobile, customers can switch data plans during the month, so they only pay for the data they need. Charter claims Spectrum Mobile customers can save as much as 40% over competing wireless services.

Spectrum Mobile also offers mobile devices via interest-free installment plans. Devices from Samsung and LG are available today, with other devices available soon. For more information, visit Spectrum Mobile here. 

The National Telecommunications & Information Administration has launched a wireless test bed in partnership with the University of Colorado in Boulder.

As part of the five-year project NTIA's Institute for Telecommunications Sciences, which is based in Boulder, will install spectrum-monitoring sensors on the campus, with both partners sharing data on spectrum management, wave propagation and sharing scenarios.

Related: NTIA Identifies More GI Spectrum for 5G

NTIA, which is the White House's chief communications policy advisor, as well as the "regulator" of government spectrum, is under a general directive to find ways to free up government spectrum for wireless broadband, either via reclamation or sharing with private entities.

"The scientists and engineers working at ITS are experts in the field of spectrum measurement, and we expect the collaboration with CU to lead to new opportunities for government users to share spectrum with other agencies and commercial users," said NTIA administrator David Redl.

Webpass, the wireless broadband company acquired by Google Fiber in the fall of 2016, confirmed that it will shut down operations in Boston following a review of Webpass’s business in that market.

“As with any acquisition, we’ve spent some time evaluating the Webpass business,” a spokesperson with Alphabet’s Access unit said in a statement (Alphabet is Google’s parent company). “As a result of our analysis, we’ve made the decision to wind down Webpass operations in Boston. We’ll work with customers and partners to minimize disruption, and there will be no immediate impacts to their Webpass service. We continue to see strong subscriber response across the rest of the Webpass portfolio, including successful launches in Denver and Seattle in 2017.”

RELATED: Google Fiber Wraps Webpass Buy

Google didn’t elaborate further on the decision, first reported by The Verge, but it’s believed that Webpass’s performance and response in Boston wasn’t as strong as it’s been in new launch cities such as Denver and Seattle.

RELATED: Google’s Webpass Debuts in Denver

Webpass’s wind-down in Boston is expected to take several months, so customers there shouldn’t see an impact to their service right away.

RELATED: Building Fiber Networks: Difficult and Lame?

Though Webpass has found some rough sledding in Boston, another wireless broadband entrant there, Starry, said recently that it’s had some success penetrating parts of the city with a platform that relies on millimeter wave spectrum. Starry, which passes more than 240,000 homes in the market with an uncapped 200 Mbps service starting at $50 per month, says it’s been particularly appealing to cord-cutters and consumers who have never taken a pay TV service.

RELATED: Starry Connects with Cord Cutters (subscription required)

Starry and Webpass have been dueling with a trio of incumbent broadband providers in Boston that includes Comcast, Verizon and RCN.

The decision to wind down operations appears to be a small a setback for Google’s plans involving Webpass, which has been viewed as a more cost-effective alternative for broadband as Google Fiber curtailed expansion plans for its FTTP rollouts.

However, at this point, it appears that there’s no change for Webpass in its other deployment cities, which, in addition to Denver and Seattle, includes parts of Chicago, Miami, Oakland, San Francisco, and San Diego.

In October 2017, Google confirmed last week that Charles Barr, founder of Webpass, had left the company, but didn’t elaborate on the reason for his departure.

RELATED: Capex for Alphabet’s ‘Other Bets’ Falls Off a Cliff

Starry, the wireless broadband startup, and chipmaker Marvell have teamed on a tech partnership that aims to accelerate the deployment of 5G-based fixed wireless services.

Under the plan, Starry will combine its pre-standard 5G system focused on millimeter wave spectrum and smart antenna tech with Marvell’s 802.11ax chips.

The collaboration, they said, will focus in two areas – a “blueprint”/reference design for Starry’s millimeter wave, point-to-multipoint fixed broadband transceivers (the last mile in Starry’s infrastructure) that integrate Marvell’s 802.11ax chipsets; and a cloud-based internet and WiFi network monitoring platform that will tie into every node of the network and check performance of base stations and receivers as well as in-home WiFi hubs.

Starry and Marvell expect both to become available in mid-2018. Elements of that handiwork will be on display at Marvell’s suite at this week’s CES in Las Vegas.

They hold that the partnership will broaden the technology ecosystem with near-term implications while pivoting away from pre-standard 5G tech that is being developed in “silos.”

It also helps Starry tighten its ties to WiFi, as the companies note that the bulk of the world’s mobile cellular internet traffic is served via WiFi from fixed networks.

The partnership takes hold the week after Starry launched a symmetrical 200 Mbps service in Los Angeles, and Washington, D.C., (initially in beta form), that follow a commercial deployment already underway in Boston. Starry is selling the data cap-free service for $50-per month.

RELATED: Starry Launches 200-Meg Wireless Broadband Service in L.A., Washington, D.C.

They claim that the arrangement will lower the cost of entry into the market.

“When we started Starry, our goal from the beginning was to drive down the cost of deploying broadband, from the cost of equipment to speed of deployment. And we have been successful at achieving both,” Chet Kanojia, Starry’s CEO and co-founder said in a statement. “The barrier to entry in the market today – whether domestic or global – is cost. That’s why you see so few people willing to challenge incumbent monopolies. We saw 5G as an opportunity for a new ecosystem of access technologies and products to emerge – but felt that it could only happen if the barrier to entry was low.”

In an interview last week, Kanojia said that Starry and its high speed/no data cap approach has been particularly appealing to cord-cutters and cord-nevers.

Median consumption of the service is 450 GB per month in the early going, with to top 20% of Starry subscribers consuming between 600 GB to 1.6 terabytes of data per month.

More insight into Starry’s market learnings in the early going will be featured in the Platforms section of the January 15 issues of Multichannel News and Broadcasting & Cable.

Starry, the startup that has developed a competitive broadband service that uses millimeter wave technologies, said it has launched a beta version of its 200 Mbps offering in parts of Los Angeles and Washington, D.C.

Those launches expand on Starry’s earlier beta service debut in the Boston area.

Update: Starry said service is available in "select areas" of Washington, D.C, and Los Angeles, but expects to expand there similar to how it has broadened its rollout in Boston, which started as a closed beta and is now passing more than 240,000 homes. 

Starry said it expects to launch service in more than a dozen new markets in 2018. Markets launches on deck for this year include New York, Cleveland, Chicago, Houston, Dallas, Denver, Seattle, Detroit, Atlanta, Indianapolis, San Francisco, Philadelphia, Miami and Minneapolis, the company said.

RELATED: Starry’s Service Starts at $50 Per Month

Starry’s service is based on pre-standard 5G technology that uses a point-to-multipoint fixed wireless platform to deliver broadband in millimeter wave spectrum.

Starry holds that its platform can support gigabit-class speeds, though its initial offering delivers symmetrical speeds of 200 Mbps. Starry is selling that service, which is free of contracts and data caps, for $50 per month, and includes the Starry Station, a touchscreen WiFi hub.

Starry’s architecture includes the Starry Beam (a network node) that delivers connectivity to an on-premises transceiver called the Starry Point that works in conjunction with the in-home Starry Station. Starry also touted that its service includes 24/7 customer care.

RELATED: Starry Eyes Wireless Broadband Alternative

“When we founded Starry, we set out to be different. We knew we could develop and build a new and innovative broadband network, but we also wanted to deliver on a superior customer experience,” Chet Kanojia, Starry’s CEO and co-founder, said in a statement. “We take the privilege of being in your home and being your family’s ISP very seriously. From the way our customer care and installation team interacts with you, to our pledge to never throttle, block, or pick and choose what content you access, when we pledged to build a better internet, we meant it.”

In addition to grappling with traditional wired broadband providers, Starry will also be contending with major carriers, including Verizon Communications and AT&T, that are also preparing to launch 5G-based fixed wireless broadband service.

RELATED: Samsung Gets a Piece of Verizon’s 5G Action

According to a recent analysis by MoffettNathanson, Starry’s best shot at disrupting the broadband sector will be by pairing deployments in high-density areas with a low-cost technology platform.

RELATED: Low Costs, Dense Markets Critical to Starry’s Success: Analyst

The FCC under both the current chairman, Ajit Pai, and former chairman, Tom Wheeler, has been working to open up more spectrum above 24 GHZ--and elsewhere--to promote competitive, next gen, broadband services.

RELATED: Kanojia Gave FCC's Wheeler Heads up About Starry

The FCC in November took another step to promote high-frequency spectrum innovative new by voting to make an additional 1,700 MHz of millimeter wave spectrum available for 5G and declining to cap the amount of spectrum in the 24 GHz and 47 GHz bands a bidder can buy at auction.

Higher-speed wireless broadband services also work toward Pai's regulatory theory that wireless is providing competitive broadband speeds and can be considered a competitive option. That theory of choice is key to his net neutrality rule rollback proposal, which presumes that competition allows for different business models from which to choose.

In the wake of the ISP reg rollback, Starry pledged not to prioritize, block, cap or throttle content.

--John Eggerton contributed to this story

AT&T has pushed ahead with a trial of Project AirGig, a patented powerline-assisted technology that eyes speeds of more than 1 Gbps, in Georgia.

The trial, with Georgia Power/Southern Company in a rural part of the state, follows an earlier international pilot.

AT&T sees Project AirGig as a low-cost option for urban, rural and underserved parts of the globe via millimeter wave signals that are “guided” by power lines and work in tandem with wireless antennas made of plastic that are connected to the power grid.

In its earlier work around this approach, AT&T said it’s been working on ways to deliver a modulated radio signal around or near medium-voltage power lines, as a last-mile access alternative that could be configured with small cells or distributed antenna systems.

In addition to raw internet access for smartphones and tablets and other devices, AT&T sees other potential applications for AirGig, including self-driving cars and augmented reality.

RELATED: AT&T’s ‘Project AirGig’ Has Global Aspirations

AT&T is hopeful that the approach will reduce or eliminate the need to build new towers or bury new cables in locations close to aerial power lines.

“Instead, using AirGig patented technology, we would install devices to provide high speed broadband which can be clamped on by trained electrical workers in just a few minutes,” AT&T noted.

“If these trials and our continued research and development turn out the way we intend, we’ll take a big step toward bringing hyper-fast connectivity to people everywhere,” Andre Fuetsch, president of AT&T Labs, said in a statement.

This video presents a bit more detail about the technology and the initiative:

Starry, the startup that has developed a competitive broadband service that uses millimeter wave technology, confirmed that a beta version of the service is available to parts of Boston for $50 per month and delivers symmetrical speed of 200 Mbps.

Starry’s Boston-area beta offering, spotted by Light Reading, is being sold without a contract or extra equipment rental fees, and includes a customer care service that will help customers connect devices and troubleshoot WiFi or other issues.

RELATED: Starry Eyes Wireless Broadband Alternative

According to a Starry official, the company is currently focused on the multiple-dwelling unit (MDU) market in Boston, noting that the company has developed versions of the Starry Point, the unit that receives the signal and communications with the Starry Station WiFi hub, that can handle a range of use cases, including large and small MDUs as well as for single-family units.

In the MDU scenarios, Starry is leaning primarily on existing, in-building wiring to connect the Starry Station, though there are some cases in which Starry will do its own wiring, the official noted.

Interested customers can query the Starry site to see if service is available to them. Starry is currently available in parts of Charlestown, Somerville and Cambridge and a handful of other neighborhoods in the Boston area.

“We’re bringing additional neighborhoods online in the next few weeks,” the official said via email, noting that Starry recently made the beta service more widely available.

Comcast, RCN and Verizon are among the incumbent broadband providers Starry will likely tangle with in Boston.

Starry is helmed by former Aereo CEO Chet Kanojia.

RELATED: Aereo Auction Raises Less Than $2 Million

According to a recent analysis by MoffettNathanson, Starry’s best shot at disrupting the broadband sector will be by pairing deployments in high-density areas with a low-cost technology platform.

RELATED: Low Costs, Dense Markets Critical to Starry’s Success: Analyst

“On paper, at least, fixed wireless has the potential to be the first low-cost alternative to wired broadband,” the firm explained, noting that AT&T and Verizon are already moving in that direction with 5G-focused trials. Google Fiber is also pursuing wireless as a lower-cost alternative.

RELATED: Google Fiber's Webpass Debuts in Denver 

Common Networks, a young wireless broadband ISP, has raised a $7 million series A round led by Eclipse Ventures and Lux Capital, which were also part of the startup’s $2.3 million seed round.

The company is expanding its stack of cash as it continues to push ahead on its first deployment, in Alameda, Calif., where it offers a cap-free and contract-free broadband service for $50 per month.

Common Networks, which tangles with Comcast in the market, delivers service on a point-to-point wireless network using 5GHz spectrum in tandem with a proprietary software-based that uses commodity gear and aims to keep costs down.

Common Networks doesn’t charge for its required home-side equipment, but the service relies on a roof-mounted mast with up to four small antennas. Common Networks also supplies an WiFi access point, a Unifi Pro made by Ubiquity Networks, but customers also have the option to use their own.

Per its FAQ, Common Networks between 50 Mbps to 100 Mbps, but the average customer typically gets more than 125 Mbps upstream and down, with even faster speeds on the roadmap,  company CEO Zach Brock said, adding that he founded Common Networks under the belief that there’s an opportunity to innovate in the ISP sector and “rethink” the relationship between the customer and the broadband service provider.

Common Networks won’t say how many subs it has, but it’s been doubling that total every couple of months since launching in Alameda last year, Brock said.

While the first year was focused on R&D, the current goal is to ramp up in Alameda and to start the pursuit of its second and third markets, he added, noting that research is underway on where else its model and approach will work best in other parts of the U.S.

“We won’t only be in the Bay Area for much longer,” Brock said.

Common Networks was founded in January 2016 and currently has 11 employees, including several that hailed from Square, mobile payment company led by Twitter co-founder and CEO Jack Dorsey.

Virginia governor Terry McAuliffe has signed a bill to advance the deployment of the small cell infrastructure needed for next-gen 5G wireless broadband.

According to a summary, the bill (SB 1282): "Provides a uniform procedure for the way in which small cell facilities on existing structures are approved by localities and approved and installed in public rights-of-way. The measure includes provisions that establish requirements applicable to the location of micro-wireless facilities. The measure also addresses restrictions by localities and the Department of Transportation regarding the use of public rights-of-way or easements and specifies when a permittee may be required to relocate wireless support structures."

Related: Virginia Governor Threatens to Veto Muni Broadband Bill

Governor McAuliffe said in a statement: “I am proud to sign this new law placing Virginia at the forefront of all the economic benefits that will flow from even faster 5G Internet connections. I have made it a top priority to spur investment and job opportunities across the Commonwealth, and this law will help deliver that goal whether through improved education opportunities, better healthcare delivery, or autonomous transportation systems.”

The FCC has made speeding deployment of mobile and fixed broadband a priority.

Related: FCC Slates Broadband Deployment Webinar

The CTIA, which represents wireless broadband providers, says the bill will spur hundreds of millions in investment and create thousands of new jobs in the state.

“CTIA and the wireless industry commend Governor Terry McAuliffe and the Virginia General Assembly in supporting 5G wireless legislation that will boost business opportunity and enhance consumers’ lives,” said CTIA President Meredith Attwell Baker.

According to CTIA, Accenture estimates the bill will translate to $371 million in Virginia Beach, the largest city in the state, and $179 million investment in the state capitol, Richmond.

Webpass, the wireless broadband company acquired by Google Fiber in 2016, will soon launch a gigabit service in Seattle, starting with a downtown condo unit.

Webpass will launch at Fifteen Twenty-One Second Avenue, a 40-story building at the city’s Pike Place Market, according to local reports, including one from The Seattle Times. Webpass will reportedly start with a 1-Gbps symmetrical service that sells for $60 per month.

Update: In an announcement, Webpass said the data service will be marketed without contract requirements or data caps, noting that it will use point-to-point wireless radios that work in conjunction with the building’s existing Ethernet network.

RELATED: Google Fiber Wraps Webpass Buy

In Seattle, Webpass will compete with incumbents such as Comcast and CenturyLink. Comcast recently launched a 1-Gig (downstream) service in Seattle that uses DOCSIS 3.1 for its HFC network, and also offers Gigabit Pro, a pricier symmetrical 2-Gbps service that uses fiber-to-the-premises technology.

RELATED: Comcast Lights Up DOCSIS 3.1 in More Markets

The coming launch in Seattle  follows the February debut of Webpass service in Denver. Webpass also offers service in parts of Boston; Miami; Chicago; and San Diego, San Francisco, Oakland, Emeryville and Berkeley, Calif.

RELATED: Google Fiber’s Webpass Debuts in Denver

Google Fiber has been emphasizing the use of lower-cost wireless-based broadband deployments as it concentrates on existing FTTP deployment markets and after it paused a plan to expand into more cities.

RELATED: Google Fiber Pauses Expansion Plans, Laying Off Some Staff

Alphabet, Google’s parent company, recently announced Gregory McCray as CEO of its Access division, which includes Google Fiber.

Charles Barr, CEO and founder of Webpass, told Fortune, “We operate very autonomously and very independently” from Google Fiber.

Starry, the startup helmed by former Aereo CEO Chet Kanojia that intends to put the hurt on incumbent broadband service providers with a wireless platform that relies on millimeter wave technology, has a shot at success and can become a market disruptor, if it’s able to pair deployments in high-density areas with a low-cost technology platform.

That’s according to a new report from Craig Moffett, analyst with MoffettNathanson, who recently spent a day with Starry in Boston, its headquarters and the site of its initial beta trial.

RELATED: Starry Eyes Wireless Broadband Alternative

“On paper, at least, fixed wireless has the potential to be the first low-cost alternative to wired broadband,” Moffett wrote, noting that AT&T and Verizon are already moving in that direction with 5G-focused trials. Google Fiber, meanwhile, is pursuing wireless as a lower-cost alternative.

RELATED: Verizon Exec: ‘Meaningful’ 5G Deployments to Start in 2018

With Boston, Starry is already focused on a high-density market (Starry plans to deploy across 17 metro areas if the trial in Beantown is successful), but its next key target, Moffett said, is driving down the technology costs.

With “all-in” costs for a base station at about $25,000 (comprised of a three-sector cell site where each “Starry Beam” costs $7,000 to $8000), the total cost to pass a home in a market like Boston could go as low as $10.

But Starry, which will also be saddled with tower rental costs estimated to be at $350 to $400 per month, is also focusing on cutting the costs of the customer premises equipment -- from about $1,000 today, to perhaps $200 per home.

“With costs that low, they [Starry] could profitably offer competitive broadband speeds for a fraction of the current price of wired broadband,” Moffett wrote, adding that service penetration will also be a “critical driver.”

Moffett said Starry’s ideal density for its build-out are areas with greater than 1,000 homes per square mile. The area it’s focused on in Boston, at 2,500-plus, soundly beats that target.

Using a cost model of $10 per home in an area of that density, Moffett said the all-in cost would be in the range of $33 per month, assuming a $500 piece of CPE, or $24, assuming a $200 piece of CPE.

Using a 5% penetration for 2,500 homes per square mile, it’s not “cheap enough to be compelling,” Moffett said.

But, at a 10% penetration, the all-in monthly costs for the $200  CPE case falls to $19 per month, and the $100 CPE case drops to just $16 in total costs per month.

“The key takeaway here is that low costs are everything,” Moffett wrote, noting that the current cost curves will require Starry initially focus on multiple-dwelling units, where it can amortize the costs over a minimum of three to four customers.

Moffett also shared some other details about Starry, which now has about 100 employees, has raised roughly $63 million, and hopes to pass about 500,000 homes in Boston this year and to focus initially on non-overbuilt parts of the city.

RELATED: Starry Lands $30M ‘B’ Round

The technology will rely on a “near line-of-sight,” point-to-multipoint system, and the company said the plan is to work with inexpensive spectrum, and not necessarily only unlicensed spectrum. Its platform uses LTE for out-of-band control and channel monitoring, Moffett explained. 

RELATED: Kanojia Gave FCC's Wheeler Heads up About Starry

For the trial, Starry is rate-limiting customers, with most end-points running at 200 Mbps in the downstream and upstream direction. Moffett said he also saw test speeds in excess of 200 Mbps down from distances of more than 1 kilometer from the tower.

Starry, he said, is expecting low single digit penetration rates, but is seeing a much higher rate (in the range of 20% to 25%, and up to 50% in extreme cases) in its deployed buildings.

Starry currently isn’t charging customers for the trial and has not announced what its future pricing is, though Moffett said the company did mention price points as high as $50 per month or as low as $20, and that Starry intends to reduce friction with a self-install model.

But keeping the baseline expenses manageable will be key, as the costs for market entry have proven to be too steep for some would be broadband competitors.

“And that’s exactly what makes 5G fixed wireless so interesting…or, if you are a cable investor, so scary,” Moffett wrote.  

Cable operators are also looking at 5G as an alternative way to deliver broadband service into the home and see the backhaul requirements for 5G as a major business opportunity.

But some MSOs are also downplaying the competitive threat that 5G presents as a fixed wireless alternative to broadband service when used in lofty frequency ranges.

“I don't believe, at this stage…that it's a significant threat in regards to the wireless fixed broadband side,” Dave Watson, Comcast Cable’s president and CEO, said Thursday on the company’s Q1 earnings call.

As cellular networks pack on more capacity and become increasingly reliable, the shift to unlimited wireless service models pose a small, but still concerning, threat to cable operators and other providers of wired broadband services, MoffettNathanson's Craig Moffett concludes in a report published Wednesday.

RELATED: AT&T Expands Unlimited Wireless Plan

While emerging 5G-based fixed wireless options are considered a long-term risk as a substitution for wireline broadband, there are “more proximate risks” posed by current LTE services that are attached to unlimited wireless data plans, he explained.

RELATED: Verizon Exec: ‘Meaningful’ 5G Deployments to Start in 2018

Currently, there’s not much for cable operators and other traditional ISPs to worry about, as 2015 U.S. Census Bureau data shows that just 6% of total households or about 7% of Internet homes relied exclusively on mobile broadband services, Moffett found, noting that those numbers haven’t budged since 2013.

While there’s no question that some homes will “cut the cord” for broadband as some have done with pay TV, the big question is how many?

“We concluded that the risk (to wired broadband providers) of wireless substitution from the wireless industry’s new unlimited LTE data plans is lower than intuition might suggest,” Moffett wrote.

However, he added, it likewise “reasonable to expect at least some substitution around the edges from light users.”

But Moffett doesn’t expect a mass movement to wireless-only broadband, even if LTE is a sufficient option for a subset of consumers.

Though there are gaps between average speeds and average usage volumes with cellular options, “there are perhaps some customers – light users who are particularly price sensitive – for whom going ‘wireless only’ will have at least intuitive appeal.”

Based on somewhat recent usage models, Moffett said homes for which cellular broadband makes the most sense are those in which no single member uses more than 10 gigabytes of data per month on traditional PCs, and no more than 22 to 30 GB cumulatively between their traditional computers and smartphones.

That model assumes that a consumer would require 23 GB of hotspot data and 14 GB of cellular data to match their ideal bandwidth usage, the report holds, citing a somewhat recent report from Comcast that the median broadband home used 88 GB of data, with the typical person using 34 GB using Census data showing that the average home contains 2.6 people.

The rub is that most unlimited plans include just 10 GB of hotspot data and 22 to 30 GB of cellular data. “That’s about the right total amount, but the wrong distribution,” Moffett wrote.

So, to make cellular broadband a viable substitute for an average user, the consumer would have to shift a large swath of Internet usage to the mobile device.

The other tricky part with the model, Moffett explained, is determining the savings a home could achieve by dropping wireline broadband for a wireless-only play, as one would need to know the incremental cost of upgrading to an unlimited wireless plan alongside the current cost of the wired broadband service.

As for the risk posed, cable operators appear to be the least exposed, given their robust wired networks and wireless options, Moffett said.

RELATED: Comcast Unveils Xfinity Mobile

The telcos are more vulnerable especially where they have not upgraded to fiber-based offerings, and are more exposed based on how heavily they currently lean on wired broadband.

“If you believe that wireless substitution is a risk to wireline operators, CenturyLink would be the name to watch,” Moffett wrote.

Generally, he expects that lower income customers are the most likely to consider a wireless-only play.

“The very narrative of wireless substation poses a risk, even if it is a tiny issue for the actual numbers,” Moffett wrote, but stressed that “the risk is not zero.”

Webpass, the wireless broadband unit of Google Fiber, said it has launched in Denver and identified the “first apartment community” to receive service, which delivers up to 1 Gbps for $60 per month.

Google Fiber, which will compete in the market with incumbents that include Comcast and CenturyLink, confirmed that the Larimer Place condos at 16th street and Larimer Street in downtown Denver, is the first community to getting access to the Webpass service in the Mile High City. Webpass noted that it is currently building out its local data center stack that will allow installation of point-to-point wireless radios to provide service to customers in the area.

RELATED: Google Fiber Wraps Webpass Buy

Webpass also announced that it has hired Roger Fitch as the GM who will head up the company’s Denver-area business. Fitch is also late of MultiTek Global, McAfee, StorageTek, OneSecure and Global Crossing, according to his LinkedIn profile.

Webpass also offers service in parts of Boston; Miami; Chicago; and San Diego, San Francisco, Oakland, Emeryville, and Berkeley, Calif.

Ars Technica reports that a new job listing indicates that Webpass is also targeting Seattle.

The launch in the Denver area amplifies Google Fiber’s new emphasis on wireless-based broadband as it concentrates on existing FTTP deployment markets and puts plans to expand into some markets on the backburner.

RELATED: Google Fiber Pauses Expansion Plans, Laying Off Some Staff

Earlier this month, the company announced Gregory McCray as CEO of Alphabet’s Access division, which includes Google Fiber.

Verizon said it plans to launch 5G “pre-commercial” gigabit broadband services to select customers in 11 U.S. markets by mid-2017, the carrier announced ahead of next week’s Mobile World Congress confab in Barcelona.

Verizon said the 5G trials will encompass “several hundred cell sites that cover several thousand customer locations” in the following metro areas: Ann Arbor, Mich.; Atlanta, Bernardsville, N.J.; Brockton, Mass.; Dallas; Denver; Houston; Miami; Sacramento; Seattle; and Washington, D.C.

The trials represent “another important step in commercializing gigabit broadband service to homes and offices via a wireless 5G connection,” Verizon said, noting that the tech pilots are being conducted in “close collaboration with Verizon's 5G Technology Forum (5GTF) partners” that include Ericsson, Intel, Qualcomm Technologies and Samsung.

RELATED: 5G: An Emerging 'Frenemy' 

"Ericsson's partnership with Verizon in rolling out 5G customer trials is accelerating the global 5G ecosystem," said Rima Qureshi, head of region North America at Ericsson, said in a statement. "These end-to-end solutions are a key step for preparing Verizon's network for commercial deployment with different 5G scenarios and use cases."

"The tremendous progress we have made with Verizon in commercializing 5G represents our companies' mutual focus on delivering the highest level of innovation to our customers," said Woojune Kim, Vice President, Next Generation Business Team, Samsung Electronics.

"The 5G systems we are deploying will soon provide wireless broadband service to homes, enabling customers to experience cost-competitive, gigabit speeds that were previously only deliverable via fiber,” added Woojune Kim, VP, next generation business team at Samsung Electronics.

"5G technology innovation is rapidly evolving," said Adam Koeppe, VP, network planning at Verizon. "Network density is increasing to meet the demands of customers, and following the FCC's aggressive action on 5G spectrum, the time is right to deliver the next generation of broadband services with 5G."

Starry, the wireless broadband startup led by former Aereo CEO Chet Kanojia, has raised a $30 million “B” round that brings its total funding to $63 million, the company confirmed. 

RELATED: Starry Eyes Wireless Broadband Alternative

The startup disclosed a $30 million raise in this SEC filing dated Dec. 16. In January, Starry announced backers that included FirstMark Capital, Tiger Global, IAC, KKR, HLVP and Quantum Strategic Partners, but did not say how much funding it had raised at the time.

Kanojia, who tried to disrupt the pay TV industry with Aereo, which went bankrupt and lost its case against several major broadcasters, is now turning his eyes toward broadband with a wireless broadband service that’s aiming to deliver speeds up to 1-Gig using millimeter wave technology. Starry's service will not be saddled with data caps.  

RELATED: Supremes Rule Against Aereo

Starry also confirmed that it is conducting a closed beta in Boston, with plans to expand that toward the end of Q1 2017. That expansion and deployment in Boston is expected to continue for the next several months in anticipation of deployments outside of Boston in a handful of cities by the end of 2017. 

RELATED: Kanojia Gave FCC's Wheeler Heads up About Starry

Ahead of a commercial debut, Starry is selling a WiFi router with a 3.8-inch touchscreen for $249.99, already reduced from an originally announced retail price of $349.99. Per the Starry site, the device is available directly through the company or via outlets such as Amazon, Best Buy and B&H.

If “WiFi-first” strategies become a central piece of cable operators’ wireless and mobile game plans, a new, more advanced version of the technology may help to lead the way in the years to come.

The innovation, called WiGig or 802.11ad, is the follow-up to 802.11ac, and promises to support up to 8 Gigabits per second over shorter ranges, while also living in the 60-Gigahertz region — sometimes referred to as “millimeter wave” — that will play a role in the coming 5G platform.

Those high-performance capabilities, along with enabling less congestion than 2.4-GHz and 5-GHz WiFi technology, hit on several potential use cases that could serve cable operators and other service providers.

SUPPORTS 4K STREAMING

On the pure capacity side, WiGig will provide more fuel for 4K video streaming, the transferring and synching of massive files. It will also support apps that require extremely low latencies, including virtual reality and 360-degree video. Today’s higher-end VR platforms, such as the Oculus Rift, HTC Vive and PlayStation VR, require users to connect their headsets to PCs or gaming consoles with cables. A WiGig-connected VR platform will aim to do the job wirelessly and push the industry toward standalone headsets.

WiGig appears to be ready for its closeup. The Wi-Fi Alliance, which runs an interoperability certification program, said it has given the green light to a WiGig-equipped Dell laptop, the Latitude E7450/70; Intel’s Tri-Band Wireless client and reference design kits; and reference adapters from Peraso, Qualcomm and Socionext. Many other chipmakers are also in the mix, including Marvell, Broadcom and MediaTek, with TP-Link and Netgear already on board with WiGig access points.

ABI Research forecasts that 180 million WiGig chipsets will ship to the smartphone market in 2017.

Certification testing is usually viewed as an “inflection point” for most new WiFi technologies, and is expected to be the same for WiGig, Kevin Robinson, vice president of marketing at the Wi-Fi Alliance, said. WiFi now enjoys an installed base of about 8 billion devices, he noted.

MANY USES FOR CABLE

Robinson sees WiGig playing an important role in cable strategies going forward — in and out of the home.

In the home, he said he expects WiGig to come to cable modem gateways that support a growing mix of laptops, tablets, streaming devices and gaming consoles and IoT devices that connect to the home network. The capacity gains from WiGig will also help to eliminate potential bottlenecks because performance will be more in line with DOCSIS 3.1, the new multi-Gigabit data platform for hybrid fiber coax networks.

Akin to strategies being pursued by companies such as Google Fiber, Robinson also expects cable operators to consider using WiGig as a point-to-point “fiber replacement” to connect to homes where extending traditional wirelines is either difficult or just expensive. In metro deployments, WiGig could be used to create bandwidthrich small cells that provide generous throughputs for individual users who are trying to connect, he said.

Google Fiber has hit the pause button when it comes to expansion, but reiterated that it will continue to push ahead and expand in its current batch of markets.

“We remain very committed to growth across those [existing] cities,” Ruth Porat, CFO of Google parent company Alphabet, said Thursday during the company’s Q3 earnings call.

Google Fiber was “very active in a lot of cities in the third quarter alone,” she added. “We rolled out four new cities, so that brings us to 12 cities across the U.S. where we’re deployed, in construction, or in development, and we’re making great progress in those cities.

Porat’s comments come just days after Google Fiber confirmed that it will temporarily halt expansion plans in “potential’” as it refines its deployment and technology approaches and continues to emphasize a future paved by new speedy (and less expensive) wireless platforms. Craig Barratt, CEO of Alphabet’s Access unit, is also stepping down from that role but staying on as an advisor.

RELATED: Google Fiber Pauses Expansion Plans 

“When you go back to the initial impetus for creating the business, it was the founders' view that there's a sizable opportunity given the need for abundant connectivity on networks that are always fast and always open, and we do continue to be committed to that vision,” Porat said, noting that the company has achieved “some important breakthroughs in new technologies,” particularly around wireless.

“We wanted to focus on the potential with these efforts before we reaccelerate deployment,” she added.

Google Fiber doesn’t break out revenues or subscribers, but it’s part of “Other Bets,” a unit of Alphabet that includes other early-stage and “moonshot”  projects that span a wide range of industries.

In Q3, Other Bets posted an operating loss of $865 million, narrowed from a year-ago loss of $980 million on revenue s of $197 million, up from $141 million.

Other Bets revenue was primarily generated by Nest, Google Fiber, and Verily. Porat said Fiber investment remains the primary capex driver at Other Bets.

AT&T is exploring the delivery of broadband services outside its wireline footprint by testing point-to-point millimeter wave wireless technology to deliver 100 Mbps speeds to select apartment complexes in Minneapolis.

The platform being tested extends connections from a fiber-connected property to neighboring properties using small radio/antenna systems placed on the properties' rooftops. Once a neighboring building receives the multi-gigabit millimeter wave wireless signal, AT&T converts it to high-speed wired Internet connection that rides on existing or new wiring in the property to each unit.

AT&T said it is also eying faster speeds in these trial properties, perhaps up to 500 Mbps. AT&T is also considering rollouts in parts of Boston,  Denver, New Jersey, New York City, Philadelphia, Phoenix, Seattle and Washington, D.C.

Notably, residents in the trial properties can also get DirecTV service using an “Advantage” platform that relies on a single satellite dish on the building to send a video signal to a centralized distribution system without having to install dishes on individual unit balconies.

"We're trialing the latest innovations in wireless and wired network technologies. This will make it possible for us to potentially deliver an internet connection to more locations where we have not previously been able to offer a home internet connection," Ed Balcerzak, senior vice president, Commercial and Connected Communities at AT&T, said in a statement. "If successful, this will give us the ability to offer a combination of internet, DirecTV and wireless services to apartment complexes and multifamily communities in additional metro areas."

Google Fiber said it has closed its acquisition of Webpass, a point-to-point wireless broadband service provider that serves portions of San Francisco, Oakland, San Diego, Miami, Chicago and Boston.

Google, which announced the deal in June, noted that its acquisition of a smaller affiliate, Webpass Telecommunications LLC, is expected to close later this year.

RELATED: Google Touts Potential for Wireless Broadband

“Going forward, Webpass will continue to grow and scale their business with point-to-point wireless technology, including expanding into new cities,” Dennis Kish, president of Google Fiber, said Monday in this blog post. “Google Fiber will continue to build out our portfolio of wireless and fiber technologies, to bring super fast Internet to more people, faster. In the meantime, there will be no changes for current Webpass or Google Fiber customers, who will continue to get the same great services they love.”

He reiterated that Google Fiber’s “strategy going forward will be a hybrid approach with wireless playing an integral part,” noting that point-to-point wireless has shown to be reliable way to deliver high-speed services in high density environments.

Google has asked the FCC for permission to move ahead with plans to trial wireless broadband in as many as 24 U.S. locations, including New York City, Chicago and Atlanta.

Of recent note on the wired side, Google Fiber has opened up the sign-up process in the North Carolina “Triangle” area, starting in Morrisville.

AT&T this week introduced Project AirGig, an emerging platform that, the company claims, will be capable of delivering low-cost, multi-gigabit wireless Internet speeds backed by power lines while also touting it as an approach that will be easier to deploy than fiber.  

AT&T, which has been using a fiber-based “GigaPower” platform to deliver 1-Gig services to pockets of several U.S. markets, said Project AirGig could fit well in urban, rural and underserved parts of the globe.

AT&T expects to begin Project AirGig field trials sometime in 2017.  While noting that the technology is “deep in the experimentation phase” with more than 100 patents or patent applcitions filed in support of the technology, AT&T claims that Project AirGig will be easier to deploy than fiber and run on license-free spectrum.

AT&T said it’s working on different ways to deliver a modulated radio signal around or near medium-voltage power lines, viewing it as a last-mile access alternative that can be configured with small cells or distributed antenna systems.

In addition to delivering multi-gigabit speeds, AT&T also sees Project AirGig applying to a utility’s meter, appliance and usage control systems.

“Project AirGig has tremendous potential to transform internet access globally – well beyond our current broadband footprint and not just in the United States,” John Donovan, chief strategy officer and group president, Technology and Operations, at AT&T said in a statement. “The results we’ve seen from our outdoor labs testing have been encouraging, especially as you think about where we’re heading in a 5G world. To that end, we’re looking at the right global location to trial this new technology next year.”

Here’s a promotional video about Project AirGig:

There might be a bit less actual “fiber” in Google’s broadband diet in the years to come.

Google Fiber, the ISP that has hitched its wagon to fiber-to-the-premises networks and Gigabit broadband services, has been flirting with wireless broadband technologies as it looks to accelerate the pace of deployments and reduce deployment costs.

Google’s courting of wireless access technologies reached the marriage stage in June, when it acquired Webpass, a company that specializes in wireless broadband delivery in markets such as San Diego, San Francisco and Oakland, Calif.; Miami, Fla.; Chicago; and Boston.

And earlier this month, Google sought permission from the Federal Communications Commission to conduct wireless broadband trials in as many as 24 U.S. locations, including New York, Chicago and Atlanta.

Google wants to conduct those experiments for about two years, and has requested to operate those trials in the 3550 to 3700 Megahertz band that has been opened up for small-cell spectrum sharing.

Google’s growing interest in wireless is also being interpreted by some as a step back from its commitment to wired networks, which are not only expensive but time-consuming to deploy from scratch.

Google Fiber is part of “Other Bets,” Alphabet’s longer-term, moonshot projects such as self-driving cars. That unit lost $709 million on revenue of $185 million in Q2.

Alphabet, Google’s parent company, has reportedly suspended fiber projects in markets such as San Jose, Calif., and Portland, Ore., as it considers less expensive wireless alternatives.

“We’re continuing to work with city leaders to explore the possibility of bringing Google Fiber to many cities,” Google Fiber said in a statement. “This means deploying the latest technologies in alignment with our product roadmap, while understanding local considerations, which takes time.”

On the wired end, Google Fiber has launched service in parts of Nashville, Tenn.; Atlanta; Kansas City; and Provo, Utah, and also has deployments underway in Salt Lake City, Utah; San Antonio, Texas; and Charlotte and Raleigh-Durham, N.C. It has been mulling expansions in Los Angeles; Chicago; Dallas; Portland, Ore.; San Jose, San Diego and Irvine, Calif.; Phoenix, Ariz; Oklahoma City; Louisville, Ky.; and Jacksonville and Tampa, Fla.

And wireless is just one tool that Google Fiber has in its bag as a way to speed its deployment trajectory.

In some markets, such as Atlanta, Google Fiber has been plugging into existing fiber infrastructure to reach select apartment buildings. In Huntsville, Ala., Google Fiber plans to deliver services as a “tenant” on a fiber network that’s being built by the local municipality.

SIDEBAR: Piggybacking on City Networks

Wireless will be a big factor in Google Fiber’s future, but riding on the pipes of others is also part of the game plan. In Huntsville, Ala., Google Fiber will offer services as a “tenant” on a fiber network that’s being built by Huntsville Utilities.

“The key for us is that this isn’t a Google Fiber project,” Jay Stowe, CEO of Huntsville Utilities, said in a recent interview. “This is a fiber project that will help us operate our water, gas and electric system for efficiency.”

The municipality is leasing excess dark fiber to Google, which will be tasked with providing and managing the equipment to activate and light up services on those lines. There’s no revenue sharing involved, as Google Fiber will handle all customer interactions.

Huntsville Utilities will charge Google Fiber a fixed fee per address passed, a move that gives it a stable income while also reducing risk, said Stowe, who is reportedly leaving the muni this fall to become senior vice president of Distributed Energy Resources at the Tennessee Valley Authority. It is building a fiber backbone, expected to be completed by year-end, that will loop around the city and target between 100,000 to 110,000 addresses, including businesses and multiple dwelling units.

The first of six network distribution areas within the city is slated to be completed by February 2017, with the last to be done by September 2019. Theoretically, Google Fiber can start to offer service when the first network distribution area is completed early next year.

Huntsville Utilities, which has tapped The Broadband Group as a consultant, has a bidding process underway for suppliers and has budgeted about $60 million for its part of the package.

Google is gearing up to conduct wireless broadband trials in as many as 24 U.S. locations, including New York City, Chicago and Atlanta, according to a partially-redacted document filed with the FCC on August 5 that is seeking permission to move forward.

Google “requests authorization to conduct radio experiments in support of developing Citizens Broadband Radio Service (CBRS) technologies, using [REDACTED] experimental transmitters at up to 24 U.S. locations,” the company noted in the filing, adding that it’s seeking the green light to conduct experiments for 24 months.

The company said the FCC’s decision to allocate the 3.5GHz band for shared use opens up the door for wireless broadband options.

Google’s request is to operate its trials in and adjacent to the 3550-3700 MHz band that has been opened up for small-cell spectrum sharing by CBRS devices.

“Authority to operate in this range will ensure that Google has access to sufficient spectrum for experimentation while avoiding interference to incumbent operations…”

Google’s continued flirtation with wireless comes amid Google Fiber’s relatively slow deployment of FTTP networks in several markets. According to the San Jose Mercury News, Google Fiber has put buildouts on hold so it can pursue less expensive alternatives.

Ruth Porat, CFO of Google parent company Alphabet, said on the latest earnings call that Google Fiber is “exploring both fiber and wireless” while referencing Google’s recent acquisition of Webpass, a company that specializes in wireless broadband delivery in markets such as San Francisco, Oakland, San Diego, Miami, Chicago and Boston.

"We are working to test the viability of a wireless network that relies on newly available spectrum," an Alphabet spokesperson told Business Insider, the first to report about the FCC filing. "The project is in early stages today, but we hope this technology can one day help deliver more abundant Internet access to consumers."

According to the filing, Google is eyeing the following markets as potential test locations: Phoenix, Ariz.; Atwater, Los Angeles, Mountain View, Palo Alto , San Bruno and San Francisco, Calif; Boulder, Colo.; Tampa, Fla.; Atlanta, Ga.; Chicago, Ill.; Des Moines, Iowa; Kansas City , Kan.; Omaha, Neb.; Las Vegas, Nev.; New York City; Oklahoma City, Okla.; Portland, Ore.; Austin, Texas; Provo, Utah; and Blacksburg and Reston, Va.

On the wired end of the business, Google Fiber has launched service in parts of Nashville, Tenn.; Atlanta; Kansas City; and Provo, Utah, and has also committed to deploy in Salt Lake City; San Antonio; and Charlotte and Raleigh-Durham, N.C.  It has also been mulling expansions in Los Angeles; Chicago; Dallas; Portland, Ore.; San Jose, Irvine and San Diego, Calif.; Phoenix; Oklahoma City; Louisville, Ky.; and Jacksonville and Tampa, Fla.

In Atlanta, Google Fiber started off by using existing fiber infrastructure to deliver service to a select batch of apartment buildings. Google Fiber announced via Twitter this week that it has started sign-ups Atlanta for the network it is building there, and set up a deadline of September 29 for the Midtown East and Piedmont Heights areas.

Next-gen 5G technologies and standards are still in the development phase, but Verizon is already looking to deliver high-speed broadband speeds over wireless connections next year.

“We see the stars aligning very quickly when it comes to the 5G future,” Lowell McAdam, Verizon’s CEO, said Tuesday on the company’s Q2 earnings call, noting that the FCC has completed its radio specs, opening the door to testing of technical components.

Verizon’s work around 5G and millimeter wave spectrum is “preparing us for a fixed commercial wireless fiber launch in 2017,” he said, noting that the FCC’s recent approval of Verizon’s lease agreement with XO Communications provides a “clear spectrum path for 5G deployment.”

Update: Fran Shammo, Verizon's EVP and CFO, clarified later that Verizon views "2017 as a development year for 5G," but allowed that the FCC ruling allowing the use of leases "could accelerate" that timing. "But...to get to a commercial launch and actually start to generate revenue, I think that will come in either very late 2017 or early 2018," he said, noting that Verizon is not including any of that in its current financial guidance. .

“I think of 5G, initially as, in effect, wireless fiber,” McAdam said. “With wireless fiber, the so-called last mile can be a virtual connection dramatically changing our cost structure." 

He noted later that about half the costs of deploying Fios is in the home, with the drop being the most expensive outside the home. Verizon isn’t providing hard numbers yet on 5G deployment, but McAdam noted the home routers cost the same but don’t need the ONT (optical network terminal) and that Verizon can add 5G “for very little incremental cost” as it densifies 4G networks with small cells.

“We expect there to be a significant cost reduction” with 5G, McAdam said.

Verizon has been testing 5G in Dallas (with Ericsson and Nokia) and in New Jersey and Virginia and has been seeing speeds above 1 Gbps at over 500 yards or less – more than enough capacity for up to six Ultra HD TV signal, six virtual reality units, and numerous tablets and other mobile devices.

McAdam said Verizon’s now in the process of moving that work into the field, where it can start to cover 200-home developments. It will also look at some rural environments.

Further out, Verizon will be pursuing mobile use cases for 5G that support “massive” scale for the Internet of Things and low latency services and apps, he said.

McAdam also offered updates on Verizon’s work with cities such as Boston, where it’s moving ahead with “one fiber strategy” initiative for wireless and Fios-based services. Verizon, he said, is in similar talks with other cities, including San Francisco.

“No longer are discussions solely about local franchise rights, but how to make forward-looking cities more productive and effective,” he said, adding that Verizon’s XO deal, which includes 40 metro fiber rings in major cities, is key to this strategy.

And while the recent work stoppage impacted Verizon’s Fios results in Q2, the rate of growth is expected to “return to a normal run rate in the third quarter,” Fran Shammo, Verizon’s EVP and CFO, said.

Q3 “will be a more positive quarter for us,” Shammo said, also predicting that Fios growth will be “back in stride by the fourth quarter.”

Verizon execs also added color to the company’s proposed $4.83 billion acquisition of Yahoo’s operating business, holding that it will help Verizon scale up and become a bigger player in mobile media.

Verizon sees “tremendous opportunity in the digital video marketplace” with that deal, McAdam said. “Content  creators and advertisers are hungry for alternatives as the market expands for both in-home and mobile consumption…Verizon intends to be a significant player in this space." 

He said there are opportunities in areas such as sports, where Verizon can stream games not just on Fios but also over AOL and Yahoo properties as well as via go90. “We view this as a waterfall of content  moving down through our different properties.”

McAdam said Verizon’s not yet to put a hard figure on the synergies it expects to generate from the Yahoo deal. “They're meaningful; let me put it that way." 

Following a preview at INTX in Boston, Comcast said it has begun to deploy a portable broadband platform, called Xfinity WiFi on Wheels, that was developed in partnership with Ericsson.

The platform, tailored to bring WiFi connectivity to venues such as concerts and festivals as well as emergency response situations, is a customized Ford T-350 van equipped with six Ericsson WiFi access points perched on a 40-foot tall mast.

“The Wi-Fi has a 500-foot range and can support up to 3,000 users, potentially reaching speeds five times faster than cellular,” Eric Schaefer, Comcast’s SVP of wireless product management, noted in this blog post.

He said Comcast conducted a practice run at the Wizard World Comic Con in Philadelphia, noting that the platform provided users with access to WiFi speeds of more than 50 Mbps.

Comcast has since taken its act on the road, stopping by the New Haven Arts and Ideas  Festival in June, but have it back in Philadelphia in time for next week’s Democratic National Convention.

Ericsson noted earlier this year that the van specs include multiple network access connections, non-line-of-sight (NLOS) microwave backhaul, onboard backup power and modular deployment elements that enable Comcast to deploy and get them operational in a matter of minutes.

Here’s a video showing some of the early deployment activity:

Adding more fuel to Facebook’s wireless broadband access ambitions, Kevin Lo, late of Google Fiber, is joining Facebook as director of infrastructure connectivity and investments.

Lo expanded on his new role in this post on Facebook. “I’ll help shape our strategy and investments with partners to build wireless technologies and ecosystems that improve global connectivity,” he noted. “Facebook has worked hard over the last decade to make the world more open and connected -- from partner oriented initiatives like OCP and TIP, to new wireless connectivity technologies and long haul fiber optic cables. I’m thrilled about the opportunity to work with like-minded colleagues in leveraging Facebook’s open and collaborative approach to innovation.

Lo will report to Jason Taylor, Facebook’s vice president for infrastructure, according to Recode, which first reported on Lo’s move last Friday (June 24).  

Lo is joining Facebook, as the social media giant and VR company continues to invest in wireless broadband technologies and platforms. In April, Facebook announced that its Connectivity Lab was moving ahead with a plan to use millimeter wave technology to drive wireless broadband services to dense urban areas. That effort includes Terragraph, a 60-GHz, multi-node system that will use radios that are based on WiGig, an enhancement to the WiFi standard for in-room, high-bandwidth communications. Facebook is working with the city of San Jose to launch a test in late 2016. 

Before heading to Facebook, Lo was GM of Google Fiber, joining the division in 2010 (former Qualcomm exec Dennis Kish has been leading Google Fiber's business team since the fall of 2014). Lo is also late of M2Z Networks, a wireless telecom service provider that has since closed, Endo-Capital, NaviSite (acquired by Time Warner Cable in 2011), and Bain & Company. 

Starry, the fixed-wireless broadband startup helmed by former Aereo founder Chet Kanojia, said it has hired former Google exec Kristen Morrissey Thiede to senior vice president of business development and corporate strategy.

Thiede will lead the business development and corporate strategy for Starry as it looks to build and expand its fixed wireless broadband network nationally and globally, and will also head up developing partnerships and alliances aimed at spurring growth. 

Thiede most recently served as an advisor at Metamorphic Ventures, a New York City-based venture capital firm and, before that, spent 14 years at Google, leading business development and content licensing for Google Fiber and early stage efforts such as Google.org's Crisis response team to Haiti, Chile, and Pakistan, and the launch of AdSense for Content and distribution efforts globally.

"We are thrilled to welcome Kristen to Starry, where her skills and experience will have a positive impact on day one," Kanojia said in a statement. "Kristen knows firsthand the challenges in building a broadband network and her experience and success with Google Fiber is a tremendous asset as we build out Starry Internet here in the U.S. and abroad. Our millimeter wave technology offers unlimited opportunities for growth, and we're excited for Kristen to help lead our expansion efforts."

"I've always been driven to take on big challenges," Thiede said, in a statement. "The Starry team is led by world class engineers developing some of the most innovative connectivity  technologies in the market today. Starry's development of an active phased array for millimeter waves is a game-changer that has the potential to solve connectivity challenges around the world. I'm excited to be a part of a passionate team of technologists willing to push big ideas and innovative technology forward."

Thiede holds a BA in political science from the University of the South. She was also identified as a Woman to Watch in 2015 by Multichannel News. 

Starry is developing a fixed-wireless broadband service that will rely on millimeter wave technology, a platform that, it claims, can deliver speeds of up to 1 Gbps. The company, which has also introduced the Starry Station, a $349.99 WiFi-capable hub that features a 3.8-inch touchscreen. Starry expects to launch a beta of its Internet service in Boston this summer, and will add more cities to the mix throughout the year.

Senate Commerce Committee chairman John Thune (R-S.D.) said that, in concert with ranking member Bill Nelson (R-Fla.), he is putting the finishing touches on his bill to boost development of 5G wireless broadband service at potentially multiple-gigabit speeds, in competition to cable broadband.

Speaking at a CTIA 5G conference in Washington Tuesday (Feb. 9), Thune said he has been working on a new draft of the Mobile Now (Making Opportunities for Broadband Investment and Limiting Excessive and Needless Obstacles to Wireless) Act, which he hoped to be able to introduce later this week.

The bill has been in the works for a while, but was pulled from a planned markup last fall.

He said the bill would "insure that hundreds of megahertz of spectrum would be made available for commercial use by 2020," which he pointed out was about the same time the 5G standard could be rolled out. He said the bill would "cut through much of the bureaucratic red tape that makes it difficult to build wireless facilities on federal properties." It would also "direct the FCC to streamline regulations affecting small-cell networks."

Thune said that perhaps most importantly, the bill would push the FCC to examine millimeter wave (high-frequency bands) to determine which are most useful for 5 G. He said those would be the most critical for delivering the multi-gigabit high speed broadband service.

He pointed out that Starry is already planning millimeter wave, high-speed wireless broadband service using current gen technology.

Thune talked loftily about the possibilities of high-speed wireless broadband, saying that to him, 5G did not mean as-yet unwritten tech specs, but a not too distant future in which "unbridled activity meets nearly unbounded capacity unlocking limitless possibility."

He suggested the FCC should clear away regulatory obstacles rather than regulate as though wireless were not a growing competitor to wired cable.

But Thune said the days of easy spectrum are over, and that Congress was going to have to do some heavy lifting going forward rather than picking bands of underutilized spectrum and auctioning them for tens of billions of dollars.

He said he could not exaggerate how much more difficult it will be to identify new bands of spectrum for broadband.

Thune said the bill would build on last year’s Spectrum Pipeline Act and that while 5G may be years away, incremental steps toward it must be taken now.

Thune said there is work in the House on a wireless spectrum bill and they should be able to combine those efforts.

Believing there’s room for a new broadband alternative, a wireless ISP called Vivint has lit up a wireless-based service that, it claims, delivers symmetrical speeds of 100 Mbps that runs over LMDS (Local Multipoint Distribution Service) spectrum and a special architecture that leans on so-called “hub homes.”

Following a pilot period, the cap-free, $59.99 per month service now touts more than 15,000 subscribers in cities such as San Antonio and El Paso, Texas, as well as several cities in northern  Utah. It plans to expand the service to three new markets, yet unnamed, by the end of the year, and to eight more in 2016.

In addition to the baseline broadband service, Vivint also offers VoIP for an additional $14.99 per month and cloud storage (via Space Monkey) for $9.99 per month.

“We think there’s room in the market for an alternative,” Luke Langford, Vivint’s general manager, wireless Internet, said, holding that “there’s not a lot of competition out there for ‘real’ broadband,” at least when viewed through the lens of the FCC, which recently bumped its definition of broadband to 25 Mbps downstream and 3 Mbps up. 

Vivint, a company that has historically focused on smart home technology and products, is taking a seemingly unique approach with its rollout that, it claims, overcomes some of the shortcomings encountered by other wireless ISPs.

Vivint, which is limited by line-of-sight restrictions, uses a combination of licensed LMDS spectrum (via partners such as XO Communications and Straight Path Communications) and unlicensed WiFi technology to deliver its pro-installed service.

On the licensed end, it deploys high frequency microwaves from fiber-connected cell towers that reach a couple of miles into residential areas and links up with individual “home hubs” equipped with microwave radios that capture those signals and two proprietary Vivint 5GHz WiFi access points (802.11n today, with 802.11ac on the roadmap) that serve as picocells for the surrounding neighborhood.

Langford said qualified homes that agree to serve as Vivint neighborhood hubs get a “sweet deal…free fast Internet forever.” They’re on the hook for powering the equipment, a cost that Vivint estimates to be in the range of $5 to $8 per month.

He said Vivint can deliver 100 Mbps and keep it cap-free in part because it limits the number of customers that can access each hub home to 24. If more customers sign on, Vivint will install another hub home.

“We think we’re a unique evolution of wireless technology,” Langford said.

Cable operators have also dabbled in fixed wireless technology to deliver speedy broadband services. OMGfast, a short-lived fixed wireless service from Cablevision Systems, used Multichannel Video and Data Distribution (MVDDS) spectrum (sold to Dish Network as part of a $700 million settlement tied to the failed Voom HD service) to deliver up to 50 Mbps.

Vivint also announced that wireless technology pioneer and Stanford professor Dr. Arogyaswami J. Paulraj has come on board as a technical advisor.