Hartford Business Journal

14 Hartford Business Journal • January 21, 2019 • www.HartfordBusiness.com By Matt Pilon mpilon@hartfordbusiness.com I n his inaugural State of the State address this month, Gov. Ned Lamont said he wants Connecti- cut's cities to be the first in New England with access to fifth-gen- eration, or "5G," mobile networks. Lamont, an entrepreneur who founded, led and eventually sold a satellite cable company that served college campuses, said bringing 5G to Connecticut would be part of a broader strategy to attract Millennials, talent and new companies to the state. 5G, which promises internet speeds many times faster than the 4G net- works that many smartphones use today, could allow consumers to down- load high-definition movies in mere seconds. But major telecom providers say the service will potentially have much more significant economic-devel- opment benefits, including supporting major steps forward in virtual and aug- mented reality applications, industrial automation, connected devices ("inter- net of things") and driverless cars. "The telecommunication companies are ready to start building — let's har- ness that excitement," Lamont said in his Jan. 9 speech, adding that he also wants to help bring faster internet to rural towns, which tend to have more limited options than denser communities. Wireless carriers like AT&T and Veri- zon have been jockeying for pole posi- tions in the race to deploy 5G networks. There's plenty of hype about the service, but it's still early. 5G has just begun to roll out on a limited basis in certain major cities, and carriers say they plan to start debuting the first 5G-enabled smartphones this year. "5G deployments for nationwide coverage are going to take a few years," said Mark Hung, research vice president at Stamford-based research and advisory firm Gartner. Still, he added, many regions are com- peting to get in on the ground floor. Lamont hasn't offered up any policy proposals. In a statement, his spokes- woman Maribel La Luz said the 5G aspiration is "a matter of equity and workforce development" and that Lamont intends to convene the telecom industry, employers and residents to de- termine how to best approach the effort. It will be up to carriers just how fast they roll out 5G, and where, but several reacted to Lamont's statement with enthusiasm. "I'm thrilled, frankly," AT&T Con- necticut President John Emra said in an interview. "I think it's great to see the governor understanding the impor- tance of communications technology." In a statement, Verizon said it shares the governor's desire to bring 5G to the state. "It will take active cooperation between private industry and state, federal, and local government to make Connecticut attractive for the infrastructure investment needed to enhance 4G network capacity and prepare for 5G," Verizon said. However, that cooperation is some- times lacking. Experts and officials say Connecticut has made important strides that could help quicken 5G deployment, but major hurdles remain before the state can distinguish itself as an early adopter. Infrastructure build-out delays One important distinction about 5G technology is that it uses higher-fre- quency bandwidths to transmit signals. That matters because higher fre- quency signals can't travel as far as those from big cell phone towers, so network operators have to install lots of smaller antennas — an estimated 300,000 nationwide in the next few years, according to wireless industry group CTIA — for 5G to work. Carriers say those minifridge-sized antennas, often called "small cells," are also crucial in helping them meet ever-increasing demand for mobile data on their existing 4G networks. Another key piece of infrastructure for 4G and 5G networks is the fiber- optic cable that connects small cells to carriers' communication networks. There have been frustrations in Con- necticut when it comes to building-out small cells and fiber. The problems have been caused in part by a ramp-up in ac- tivity, as fiber companies and carriers seek to address growing demand for mobile data and plan for a 5G future. The approval process for attaching communications equipment to utility poles in the state has been beset with "dysfunction and in-fighting that has resulted in chronic and systemic delays," which has hurt competition, Consumer Counsel Elin Katz wrote in a recent letter to the Public Utilities Regulatory Authority (PURA), which shares oversight of utility poles with the Connecticut Siting Council. Fiber troubles An example of Katz's concerns can be found in the experience of a new entrant to Connecticut's high-speed internet market, NetSpeed LLC, which is in the midst of building-out approximately 100 miles of fiber in West Hartford, New Haven, Bridgeport and Hamden. In a November PURA filing, NetSpeed (which markets itself as GoNetspeed) alleged that pole owners United Il- luminating and Frontier Communica- tions had failed to act on dozens of its applications, dating as far back as March 2018, to attach its infrastructure to their Super Connectivity Gov. Lamont wants CT to be a leader in 5G mobile networks but his aspirations face significant hurdles Gov. Ned Lamont aspires to help bring 5G networks to Connecticut cities as soon as possible. Experts say any such effort will likely have to address contentious regulatory topics like utility-pole access and the spread of miniature cell phone towers in neighborhoods and urban areas. PHTOOS | AP Rising demand Carriers seeking to attach fiber and other equipment to utility poles must apply to pole owners Ever- source and United Illuminating for permission. A rising number of pole applications in recent years (shown below) has created a backlog and slowed development of high-speed internet infrastructure. Note: All quarters include wirelines and wireless infrastructure applications for both Eversource and United Illuminating. Starting with Q1-17, UI added a third category, "overlash" applications, to its filings. Source: Public Utilities Regulatory Authority Q1-16 Q2-16 Q3-16 Q4-16 Q1-17 Q2-17 Q3-17 Q4-17 Q1-18 Q2-18 0 100 200 300 400 500 600 No. of pole applications 207 162 115 107 229 205 231 523 379 288 207 162 115 107 229 205 231 523 379 288

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