The FCC and some members of Congress have adopted a false narrative about our need for the rapid deployment of 5G. The narrative says that rest of the world is already ahead of the US with 5G deployment and warns about the huge downsides to our economy should we not sweep aside all barriers for deploying 5G.

This is the narrative being used to justify giving wireless carriers cheap and ubiquitous access to poles for 5G transmitters. The FCC and others want to sweep away all state and local rules for pole-related issues. They want rules that will allow wireless carriers to deploy electronics first and straighten out the paperwork later. They argue that all of this is needed so that the country can keep up with the rest of the world in 5G deployment, with some horrific, yet unspecific disastrous result should we fail to make this happen.

The big problem with this narrative is that it’s based upon false premises. The narrative is nothing more than a fairy tale spun by the wireless industry as a way to justify bypassing the normal regulatory process, to hand them fast and cheap connections on poles for wireless devices.

First, there is no big impending needed to deploy huge numbers of 5G devices, because the technology doesn’t yet exist. There are two distinct 5G technologies – 5G cellular and 5G millimeter wave broadband. The industry agrees that it’s going to take a decade until we have a 5G-compliant cellular technology available. There are thirteen key aspects of the new 5G standard that must now be tackled by engineers and then woven into the next generation electronics. We made numerous gradual incremental improvements in technology to evolve from 3G to 4G and it was only last year that we finally saw the first deployments of 4G technology that meets most of the original 4G specifications. There is no reason to think that we are going to progress any faster towards 5G and we will upgrade over time to 4.1G, 4.2G, etc. until a decade from now we finally have a 5G cellular network. By then we will no doubt start over and begin implementing 6G.

There is similarly no pressing need to deploy millimeter wave 5G. This is a technology that promises to potentially offer a gigabit alternative in residential neighborhoods. We have a long way to go before we are going to see wide-spread deployments of this technology. We are just now seeing the first early trials of the technology and it’s going to take years before electronics are widely available and affordable. Further, this technology is going to require a lot of concurrent fiber deployment, and that is likely to be the biggest cost barrier to deployment – not getting onto poles. I even have to wonder who is going to be deploying the 5G millimeter wave radios on a big scale – every one of the big telcos has made it clear that they are backing away from residential broadband, and the big cable companies have, or will soon have, gigabit-capable networks. We might never see the gigabit wireless networks that are the bait being used to tout 5G, because there might not be any deep-pocket ISPs willing to tackle such a large infrastructure investment.

What the wireless carriers are starting to deploy today are 4G small cell sites. These cell sites are being used to supplement and boost the existing cellular networks. The original big-tower cellular network was built to provide voice services and the cell site spacing is terrible for delivering broadband, which uses frequencies that don’t carry as far as the lower frequencies used for voice. The exploding demand for cellular broadband is driving the need for more cell sites just to accommodate the number of users and the amount of bandwidth that can be deployed in a given neighborhood.

The existing cellular networks are clearly under stress in urban areas. But the real issue we should be talking about is how to bolster 4G networks, not how we are already behind in the mythical 5G race. The cellular carriers are crafty and they are using the 5G race narrative as a way to get politicians to support their demands. They are promising wireless gigabit cellular speeds in just the next few years and cheap wireless gigabit broadband soon coming into every home. They have created a feigned panic that the current regulatory rules will stop this progress dead in it’s track unless carriers get fast and cheap pole access.

If this 5G narrative was true we’d be seeing a collapse of cable company stock prices. Cable companies have the most to lose if they are suddenly faced with gigabit cellular and gigabit wireless to the home. We are probably decades away from seeing cellular speeds approaching anything close to a gigabit – that’s the biggest myth in this narrative. And even when the new technology is developed for wireless gigabit to the home one has to ask what ISPs are going to spend the huge billions needed to build that network to compete against the entrenched cable companies.

I don’t want to minimize some of the barriers faced by wireless companies when trying to get onto poles today. Wireless carriers have cited a few horror stories in FCC filings. But like anything else brand new, most pole owners aren’t sure yet how to respond to requests for wireless attachments. There are a lot of issues to work through including safety, pricing, aesthetics and the long-term impact on the real estate space on poles. These are all issues that need solutions, but I can’t find one reason why we need to tackle this at breakneck speed or why we need to give the wireless carriers everything on their wish list. It’s important to bolster the stressed 4G network and we will want to be ready for the 5G technology when it is finally available. We have the time to make the needed regulatory changes in the deliberative manner that makes sure that all aspects of the issues are considered. We don’t need a fast knee-jerk response to a false 5G narrative that might create more problems than it solves.