Rick Harnish, my old colleague from the WISP industry and former Executive Director of WISPA, mentioned this article on LinkedIn:
Policy experts debate the role of wireless in universal broadband (LightReading)
In his new role as Director of Development at NextLink Internet, he said:
I have to think that this debate should have been done 20 years ago. Well actually it was, but politicians put it on the back burner back then. Due to Covid lockdowns, broadband is nearly mandatory in all homes and businesses. Politicians suddenly grasped the sense of urgency, when all of their constituents were calling their offices. All technologies have improved immensely over the past 20 years and all should be considered to connect the unconnected at speeds >50 Mbps. Very few households use or need more than 100 Mbps and most won't pay for more. Gig access is great, but it would be another 10-20 years before the whole nation could be wired with fiber. Wireless and hybrid (fiber/wireless) networks can be rapidly be deployed to alleviate the demand. Let's get to work, I know we are here at NextLink!
(Points off from NextLink for not already having Rick on their "Our Team" section.)
Rick is absolutely right (well, mostly; there are some of us who will pay for gigabit connectivity, especially if it's fiber... but just a few). The now-everyone-understands-this requirement to work / school / socialize from home during the COVID-19 Pandemic of 2020 and 2021 vividly demonstrated that we need to focus on good enough broadband available now rather than the long-deferred long term potential of Gigabit Fiber - One of These Years (or Decades).
Between WISPs like NextLink accelerating their deployments, and the emergence of Starlink, rural residents aren't going to have to wait much longer for usable, affordable Broadband Internet.
Thanks for reading!
Steve Stroh
Bellingham, Washington, USA
2021-03-23