WISPAPALOOZA 2016 - Day 2 Show Daily

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go a long way: WISP PAC noted that in a payroll
deduction program, if five employees at eachWISP
contributed $2 a week, WISP PAC would be one of
the largest PACs in D.C., bringing in $250,000 per
year to use in lobbying efforts.
Those interested in setting up a payroll deduction
can get forms fromany of theWISP PAC board
members at the show; and, after the event, forms and
donations can be sent directly to chairman Elizabeth
Bowles, at . o
Important information: Federal lawmandates that WISP
PAC only accept individual (i.e. personal) contributions, and
individuals may give amaximumof $5,000 per calendar year to
WISP PAC. Contributions may be made via check or credit card.
Contributions under $100may be given in cash.
Phillips noted that WISPA is dedicating efforts
to educate lawmakers on issues ranging from
the importance of ensuring access to unlicensed
spectrum to the regulatory burdens that the
USDA Rural Utility Services imposes.
He added that despite the good news, plenty
of challenges naturally remain ahead.
“It’s been a good year, but it’s not yet
time to break out the bubbly,”he said. “We
are still fighting a constant battle to educate
our lawmakers about our role, the state of
competition against Comcast and Verizon and the
other big companies, and on an array of trends
that is quite hard to fathom. The main thing is
to explain that if the goal is to increase access to
high-quality, affordable broadband, more people
would be better served if the systemwasn’t
dominated by big money and bureaucrats.”
FCC policies, he said, are designed to protect
incumbents from dangers that aren’t really
there—while those same incumbents are taking
advantage of subsidies. Meanwhile, regulatory
uncertainties are hampering the development of
innovative technology for the sector.
“Cable and telco companies spent $10 million
last year to fund candidates at the federal level,
and $42 million on lobbying efforts,”he said.
“I suspect it’s hard to ignore all that money.
Dwight Eisenhower said, we must guard against
the acquisition of unwarranted influence in the
councils of government. But in many states the
phone companies have systematically created
and changed the regulatory framework. They
have the protection of being the incumbent and
having access to rights of way, but are excluded
from regulation that would spur competition.”
Lobbying efforts will be critical going forward,
Phillips added, which is whereWISP PAC comes in.
The non-partisan fundraising group contributes
to candidates that are pro-WISP and supports
efforts to rais the profile of the industry.
“The WISP industry is pro-competition, pro-
consumer, pro-taxpayer, pro-small business and
pro-rural development,” Phillips said. “Let’s use
this week to become more effective advocates
for our industry—and this has to be a long-term
effort for all of us. Contribute to WISP PAC and
get involved.” o
6 WISPAPALOOZA 2016 • OCTOBER 11-13, 2016
STATE OF WISPA, continued from page 1 DON’T MISS, continued from page 4
DAY2
When: Wednesday, October 12
Where: Tango Room
Time: 7:15 p.m. - 9:15 p.m.
Contribution Levels:
Supporter: $50
Friend: $100
Patron: $250
Bronze Patron: $500
Silver Patron: $1,000
Gold Patron: $2,500
Huawei Partners with Country
Wireless on FixedWireless
Huawei and CountryWireless are building a
carrier-class fixed wireless network in central
Wisconsin.
CountryWireless plans to cover an estimated
5,000 homes withTDD LTE fixed wireless
technology. Huawei’s 4T4R TDD LTE RAN solution
allows CountryWireless to offer maximum speed of
up to 100Mbps per user with current 2Rx CPE. The
maximum speed could be double by using Huawei
4T4R CPE which becomes available in Q4 2016.
In addition, the solution allows growth without
replacing the existing infrastructure or changing
spectrum bands.
“Rural carriers look to us to help develop
robust broadband networks in a scalable and
cost-efficient way,” says Bill Gerski, vice president
of sales for Huawei. “Huawei understands the
unique needs of the Tier 3 market, which is
frequently overlooked. We are dedicated to
providing the infrastructure to help Country
Wireless achieve its goal of providing LTE network
access to rural residents.”
CountryWireless is expanding its solution andwill
have a complete fixedwireless LTE- Advancednetwork
for its subscribers in the upcomingmonths. o