Apple, AT&T, the FCC and Alphabet’s X division have all put into motion efforts to give residents of Puerto Rico more cellular connectivity.
Apple has been working with AT&T to extend and activate cell service for users in Puerto Rico. To improve what is a terrible connectivity situation there, it’s going to enable a provisional band of LTE that has been recently approved, but not activated in the US and Puerto Rico, where it has not been licensed. This will allow iPhones to connect to Alphabet X’s Project Loon balloons in the region, which were activated today.
This should allow users to send text messages and access some critical online services.
It’s always a welcome change of pace to see companies like this working together to help people in need. Good work, Alphabet/Google, Apple, and AT&T.
Now there’s a sentence you won’t hear very often.
There’s something to be said when private companies and private citizens are more willing to help than the executive government (The executive government is offering Puerto Rico a loan, not an aid package).
Good on these companies.
Whilst it is great they’re helping people, being a Ham Radio operator, I am greatly urked by a company sticking a big middle finger up to the IARU body that advises common bands for countries to adhere to internationally. Things like mobile phone, Wifi, 900mhz gear, CB, bluetooth etc.
So, whilst it’s good that they’re helping people, they’ve done it the wrong way and set an example for other companies to stick the middle finger up at the US and South American/Carribean (?) govts and override local regulations. Russia anyone with over-the-horizon radar in HAM and TV bands recently anyone?
Bad Karma. How long till people start blatting cell network frequencies with their own stuff? Dangerous precedent.
Band 8 *is* a common band (for 4G, just as it was for 3G and 2G), and this was done with FCC involvement. If it wasn’t a standard band for phones, the handsets wouldn’t be able to use it.