Adapted from an article by Patrick Austin, Feb 22, 2019 | Original Time article here.
What is Trump Talking About? More Governing by Gut Tweet?
President Donald Trump on Thursday said he wants U.S. companies to more quickly implement what’s called 5G wireless technology, the latest and greatest tech when it comes to mobile broadband.
“I want 5G, and even 6G, technology in the United States as soon as possible,” tweeted Trump, who went on to imply the U.S. was falling behind due to policies preventing the adoption of wireless technology from companies abroad. While 6G doesn’t yet exist, 5G is just starting to be deployed around the U.S. and elsewhere.
I want 5G, and even 6G, technology in the United States as soon as possible. It is far more powerful, faster, and smarter than the current standard. American companies must step up their efforts, or get left behind. There is no reason that we should be lagging behind on………
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) February 21, 2019
….something that is so obviously the future. I want the United States to win through competition, not by blocking out currently more advanced technologies. We must always be the leader in everything we do, especially when it comes to the very exciting world of technology!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) February 21, 2019
What’s 5G, and What Does Trump Mean By 6G?
5G is simply the name given to the next generation in wireless cellular technology. Like the jump from 3G to 4G, 5G promises to bring considerably faster speeds, lower latency, and increased support for more devices. Compared to 4G LTE, the wireless cell technology used in smartphones today, 5G promises speeds up to 100 times faster and a response time up to 20 times faster. But will it live up to these promises and what costs?
As for this 6G technology, What is Trump Talking About?
While that will most likely be the name given to the next logical step in the advancement of cellular technology, no such standard has been defined, and any talk of G6 is purely theoretical at this point — we’re only just starting to deploy 5G, after all. That isn’t to say it’s not being thought of; research on the merits and potential uses for 6G (also known as “6Genesis”) is being conducted at Finland’s University of Oulu, for instance. Still, with an estimated debut in 2030, don’t hold your breath.
Unfortunately, you probably can’t take advantage of any 5G speeds yet because there are so few 5G networks and devices available for consumers. Right now, Verizon has a version of 5G providing homes with high-speed wireless connectivity, though it’s only available in a handful of cities. The company announced shortly after Trump’s tweets that it’s planning to expand mobile 5G coverage to over 30 cities this year. AT&T has mobile 5G service in a variety of cities as well, though users can only take advantage of it with a 5G hotspot at the moment. T-Mobile and Sprint will roll out 5G service sometime this year. Some other services are advertised as a form of 5G, but that’s pretty much just marketing hype, such as AT&T's 5GE, which is just re-branded 4G service.
What’s Delaying 5G's Roll Out?
According to well-informed Americans . . .
5G is not needed and in many cases, not wanted. 5G has not been safety-tested and with so many being, killed and damaged by 4G Close Proximity Microwave Radiation Antennas (CPMRAs) that already dot our landscape, well-informed Americans understand that they do not want a 24/7 surveillance and crowd control weapon system installed in their neighborhoods.
Many around the world understand the certain harms to privacy, property values and health & safety that would result from the plans to install densified 4G and 5G CPMRAs and equipment in neighborhoods — installations which are completely unnecessary. Wireline Internet via Fiber Optic to Homes (FTTH) is a far superior option.
Some Comments from the public:
[HEADSLAP] IF TRUMP ONLY UNDERSTOOD …
Even if there were no risks of cyber attacks, or violation of our privacy; no impacts on our health or wildlife; Even if we didn’t risk losing our pollinators, and weren’t dumping mountains of hazardous waste into our air and water; even if our kids weren’t suffering from addiction and social dysfunction, and the energy footprint of 5g/IoT did not contribute hugely to climate change, we still wouldn’t want
5Gor any other wireless G.THERE IS NO
NEEDFOR WIRELESS EVERYWHERE AS FIBER IS BY FAR MORE RELIABLE, FASTER, AND SAFER.Our Tech Culture must change, not our neighborhoods: We must build infrastructure that supports hard-wired connections for the vast majority of all Internet and communications use, and reserve wireless for calls and texts when out and about. Such an infrastructure along with growing public awareness about the harms of wireless would encourage a natural disengagement from our addiction to wireless devices and a reintegration into the real world.
According to the Naitonal Media, supported by Wireless Co. Advertising and the FCC, a puppet-agency for Big Wireless . . .
For a wireless provider to build a 5G network, it needs access to a wide array of wireless spectrum, the use of which is largely government-regulated. Since 5G relies on both very high and very low wireless frequencies, carriers are gearing up to cover the gamut. They’re spending billions on purchasing the rights to these frequencies either through buying companies that already holding the rights, or by bidding on spectrum bands auctioned off by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) in an effort to speed up
FCC Chairman Ajit Pai in a Jan. 24 statement:
“By making more spectrum available, promoting the deployment of wireless infrastructure, and modernizing our regulations—the three components of the FCC’s 5G FAST plan, we’ll ensure that American consumers reap the substantial benefits that will come from the next generation of wireless connectivity,”
Still, spectrum is a limited resource, and it’s taking time and money for wireless companies to get the spectrum they need for 5G.
There’s also the problem of equipment. Trump’s suggestion the U.S. is “blocking out currently more advanced technology” isn’t exactly wrong. Two Chinese companies, Huawei and ZTE, manufacture 5G wireless equipment that American companies like Verizon or AT&T could use to build out their 5G networks. But security official and other experts have warned that the companies’ equipment could provide the Chinese government with a way to spy on American citizens and companies. Of course, any other 5G wireless equipment, sanctioned by the US can also spy on American citizens and companies — as is happening today with 4G technology.
In fact, through the recent signing of the National Defense Authorization Act, Trump himself has explicitly banned government use of telecommunications equipment from companies like Huawei and ZTE. The U.S. government is even pressuring allies to block Chinese-made 5G equipment, though some, like Germany, aren’t listening. In addition, a recently introduced bipartisan bill is seeking to prevent Huawei and ZTE from supplying U.S. wireless carriers with equipment.