Like AT&T, Verizon has promised 5G standalone (SA) core network for a very long time.  The mostly wireless U.S. carrier initially said it would launch standalone 5G in 2020. Some in the industry thought it did so in 2022. But the company said the technology ‘is in testing now’ and is still not available commercially. “We have it in trials only at this point. We don’t have it commercially available for our customers,” Verizon’s chief networking executive, Joe Russo, said on a podcast last month hosted by Recon Analytics. “So more to come in the next several months as Verizon will be en ..read more

Verizon says it has approximtely 222 million people covered with its mid-band C-band network, [1.] a figure the company hopes to increase to 250 million by the end of next year. “C-band is a game change for our business,” CEO Hans Vestberg said on the telco’s 3rd quarter earnings call. “Our network is winning.” Note 1. C-band sits between the two Wi-Fi bands, which are at 2.4GHz and 5GHz. It’s slightly above and very similar to the 2.6GHz band that Clearwire and then Sprint used for 4G starting in 2007, and which T-Mobile currently uses for mid-band 5G. And it adjoins CBRS, a band fr ..read more

We noted in a recent IEEE Techblog post that the 5G spending slowdown in the U.S. is broader than many analysts and executives expected.  Well, it’s worse than that! The previously referenced negative comments from the CEO of Crown Castle, were corroborated by American Tower last week: “The recent pullback was more abrupt than our initial expectations,” said Rod Smith, the CFO for cell tower firm American Tower, during his company’s quarterly conference call last week, according to Seeking Alpha. Smith was discussing the reduction in US operator spending on 5G, a situation that is now cut ..read more

Verizon has unveiled a point-to-multipoint solution to expand high-speed internet access across various locations. According to the press release, a successful proof of concept in Texas  showcased the company’s approach, leveraging its extensive mmWave spectrum holdings and fiber infrastructure. Verizon stated that its point-to-multipoint architecture is designed to cater to multi-dwelling units (MDUs) such as apartment buildings and townhomes, as well as distributed enterprise campuses and high rises. Intending to serve multiple end-user connections from a single origination location, Ve ..read more

Executive Summary: Verizon Business announced that its private 5G wireless network is live at The Smart Factory at Wichita, a new immersive, industry experience centre convened by Deloitte. Verizon collaborates with Deloitte and other companies in the Smart Factory ecosystem to advance smart manufacturing deployment and allow manufacturers to quickly adopt cutting-edge Industry 4.0 solutions and technologies that support new business models that improve quality, productivity, and sustainability. Verizon, as a builder-level collaborator in The Smart Factory at Wichita ecosystem of 20 leadi ..read more

AT&T said on Thursday that it added 708,000 postpaid cellular end point connections, a metric investors use to measure the strength of a cellular carrier’s main profit center. For the third consecutive quarter, the tally easily topped forecasts of Wall Street analysts, who had been expecting 552,300 connections in the third quarter.  AT&T executives said their core wireless business overshot their expectations during the third quarter, driving higher revenue and profits despite lingering worries about inflation. “We’re in a much better place than the broader economy,” finance ..read more

Verizon and the University of South Carolina are exploring how 5G Ultra Wideband (mmWave) can transform industries including manufacturing, healthcare and civil infrastructure, among others. To do this, Verizon and the university launched the Innovation Experience Hub, powered by Verizon 5G housed in the McNair Center in Columbia, SC where students, faculty, entrepreneurs, and corporate partners can collaborate to test and create new solutions powered by Verizon 5G Ultra Wideband, which is available in select areas. Innovators at the hub will leverage 5G connectivity and solutions to help impr ..read more

Verizon is tripling the capacity of its fiber core network by upgrading older router equipment with new equipment, capable of utilizing the latest 400 Gbps per port optical technology. When the overhaul of the fiber core network (the superhighway Verizon uses to move customers’ data) is complete, Verizon will be able to manage 115 Tbps of data, the equivalent of almost 24 billion streaming songs, at any given moment. This upgrade will significantly increase the bandwidth needed to support wireless, home internet, enterprise, small business and FIOS customers. In addition to providing the incre ..read more

Lightshed Partners says absolutely!  “This is the year for 5G Wireless Home Broadband,” as it emerges as a viable competitor to cable based Internet access. The market research firm believes that the recent deployment of large blocks of spectrum by wireless operators will enable them to offer viable home broadband service to a notable segment of the market. T-Mobile is already adding more than 200k home broadband subs per quarter, and Verizon is about to unleash rate plans that drop as low as $25/month. Verizon is also layering additional commission opportunities for their sales group. Th ..read more

The FCC’s latest auction has raised more than $69.8 billion after three weeks of bidding, a record sum that could alter cellphone carriers’ prospects for 5G and the next decade. The C-band auction, offering 280-megahertz of spectrum, started on December 8th.  Just within two weeks, it’s by far the biggest U.S. spectrum auction ever.  The auction will now pause for the Christmas holidays until Jan. 4th , when total bids could move even higher. The radio frequencies being offered range between 3.7 GHz and 4 GHz, a middle-of-the-road range considered well-suited for 5G service. New 5G s ..read more