The NetAmerica Alliance announced another partner win, with Panhandle Telephone of Oklahoma joining the rural 4G LTE alliance. Panhandle, based in Guymon, Oklahoma operates as PTCI, and is a large telephone cooperative offering triple play services, but also operates an…
The NetAmerica Alliance, an organization launched with the goal of helping rural network operators gain economies of scale in making 4G deployments, has added two new members—Peoples Telephone Cooperative of Quitman, Tex. and Etex Telephone Cooperative of Gilmer, Tex. When…
Succeeding in the wireless business requires scale. That’s one of the reasons why AT&T is scooping up T-Mobile. In a world of those national behemoths, small rural and regional wireless carriers are at a distinct disadvantage. NetAmerica hopes to change…
It’s hard to believe it’s been five years since we first heard about Verizon’s LTE in Rural America program, which gives small rural network operators the ability to build out Verizon spectrum in areas where Verizon is not doing a…
FirstNet, the nation’s planned mobile broadband public safety network offers significant opportunities for rural wireless network operators, according to Steven K. Berry, president and CEO of the Competitive Carriers Association. “My suggestion to carriers is ‘this is an opportunity you…
As the nation’s largest wireless service providers roll out VoLTE, they’re looking for ubiquitous coverage – and that presents both opportunities and challenges for the nation’s smaller rural wireless operators that rely on roaming agreements with the larger carriers for…
Bi-partisan legislation introduced in the U.S. Senate yesterday has the potential to engender more partnerships between major wireless carriers and smaller rural wireless network operators. The legislation, to be known as the Rural Spectrum Accessibility Act, would give three-year extensions…
Telecompetitor covered a lot of big telecom stories in 2014, but there were 12 that stood out in my mind – and I thought readers might find it helpful to see them all recapped in one place. If there is…
Sprint rural LTE initiatives are making significant progress. The company said last Friday that it has added 15 rural and regional LTE roaming partners, bringing its total to 27. In the same announcement, NetAmerica CEO Roger Hutton revealed that his…
Sprint’s rural LTE plans are gaining momentum, as an announcement today from Alcatel-Lucent illustrates. Earlier this year, nTelos said it would expand its LTE network in West Virginia and western Virginia to specifications aligned with Sprint’s own network modernization program….
It’s official. We’re in the middle of a fierce wireless price war by national wireless carriers. AT&T, Sprint, T-Mobile, and Verizon have all introduced new plans, undercutting each other in the past few weeks, with more to come. This war…
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