Broadband

According to the latest Speedtest Intelligence findings from Ookla, the share of states where at least 60% of tested fixed-broadband users achieve the FCCโ€™s 100 Mbps down/20 Mbps up benchmark rose sharply between late 2024 and the first half of 2025. That count climbed from 22 states (plus Washington, D.C.) to 38 states (plus D.C.), signaling faster lastโ€‘mile networks and better in-home performance for a sizable portion of U.S. households. Progress on equity also accelerated. In the first half of 2025, 33 states reduced the performance gap between urban and rural usersโ€”while 17 saw the gap widen versus the second half of 2024.
MTN has launched StarEdge Horizon, a Layer 2 service over SpaceXโ€™s Starlink designed to move enterprise traffic on a private path to MTN points of presence (PoPs), bypassing the public internet and reducing latency, jitter, and operational complexity. The service extends a private Layer 2 domain from remote sites over Starlink into MTN regional PoPs, where enterprises can centralize internet egress, security, and policy. QoS and segmentation protect prioritized traffic, while multi-link redundancy reduces site-level downtime risks. By bringing a private Layer 2 architecture to Starlink, MTNโ€™s StarEdge Horizon turns LEO from best-effort internet into a controllable enterprise transport.
The partnership targets two fronts: mission-critical rail communications for operations and high-speed broadband for passengers. The scope includes deploying advanced 5G infrastructure, testing FRMCS-based use cases, and running a real-world trial on an existing SAR line to validate performance, integration, and safety requirements. An innovation and test lab will be established to accelerate solution validation, and SAR teams will be trained on FRMCS/5G rail technologies to build in-house capability. The partners will explore 5G Standalone capabilities for operational communications, including quality-of-service guarantees, redundancy, and resilience needed for rail. FRMCS-aligned services such as mission-critical push-to-talk/data/video (MCX), Railway Emergency Call, and secure staff communications will be validated for integration with signaling and control systems.
Verizon signed a commercial agreement with Eaton Fiber, an affiliate of Tillman Global Holdings, to extend fiber-to-the-premises service well beyond its current Fios footprint and the locations it expects to add through its planned Frontier deal. The structure is straightforward. Eaton Fiber will fund, build, and operate the local access network. Verizon will handle sales, marketing, and customer care and gain full residential retail exclusivity on the new builds during deployment and for a subsequent period. Fiber is the control point for converged services.
Germanyโ€™s migration from copper to fibre is entering a price-led phase, and Vodafone is sharpening fibre offers to pull DSL users across the line. Germany has the fibre footprint but not the take-up: many households still cling to DSL and VDSL even where FTTH is available, leaving operators running two networks and straining economics. The emphasis is on choice, transparency and avoiding dual-running costsโ€”nudging, not forcing, customers to move. Price becomes the immediate lever to move hesitant households and SMEs off copper, especially in multi-dwelling units where permissions, in-building wiring and installation coordination add friction.
A new partnership between Palantir and Lumen Technologies signals a shift from internal AI pilots to packaged enterprise services delivered over a telecom-grade edge and network footprint. Palantir will provide its Foundry and Artificial Intelligence Platform (AIP) as the data and decisioning layer for Lumenโ€™s enterprise AI offerings, which Lumen plans to deliver on top of its edge computing nodes, broadband infrastructure, and managed digital services. The companies position this as a multi-year, strategic collaboration focused on operational AI use cases, not just experimentation. While exact terms were not disclosed, multiple reports indicate Lumenโ€™s total spend could exceed $200 million over several years.
AT&Tโ€™s third quarter shows steady operational execution in wireless and fiber, supported by portfolio moves that aim to strengthen capacity, reach, and cash generation through 2027. AT&T reported Q3 2025 revenue of $30.7 billion, up 1.6% year over year, with diluted EPS of $1.29 boosted by a gain related to the sale of its DIRECTV investment; adjusted EPS was $0.54, roughly flat year over year. Free cash flow improved to $4.9 billion from $4.6 billion a year ago, a key metric for debt reduction and capital returns. AT&Tโ€™s cross-sell between fiber and mobility is showing tangible traction in both net additions and churn control.
Industry capex remained exceptionally strong in 2024, underscoring broadbandโ€™s status as critical infrastructure for the digital and AI economy. Broadband providers invested an estimated $89.6 billion in U.S. communications infrastructure last year, pushing cumulative investment since 1996 to more than $2.2 trillion and keeping the 2020โ€“2024 average above $90 billion annually. Spend concentrated on fiber deepening, rural reach, wireless capacity, and overall network scale for AI, cloud, and streaming workloads. While 2024 trailed 2023โ€™s higher tally, it still signals a sustained, competitive race to modernize fixed and mobile networks.
A planned merger between Lynk Global and Omnispace aims to fuse spectrum assets, satellite technology, and SESโ€™s multi-orbit infrastructure to scale 3GPP-compliant direct-to-device services worldwide. The combined company will pair Omnispaceโ€™s globally coordinated S-band holdings, about 60 MHz anchored by ITU filings and aligned to non-terrestrial network standardsโ€”with Lynkโ€™s patented multi-spectrum D2D platform. SES, already an investor in both firms, will become a major strategic shareholder and provide access to its GEO and MEO assets and ground network to improve coverage, resiliency, and time-to-market. Lynk has already launched commercial messaging and alerting in small markets with a handful of LEO spacecraft.
Mint Mobile is expanding from prepaid wireless into fixed wireless access, introducing a 5G home internet offer that targets price-sensitive households and small offices with unlimited data and headline speeds up to 415 Mbps for as low as $30 per month. The companyโ€™s โ€œMINTernetโ€ is a self-install 5G home internet service that rides on T-Mobileโ€™s nationwide 5G network, following T-Mobileโ€™s acquisition of Mintโ€™s parent Kaโ€™ena Corporation in 2024. At a starting price of $30 per month, Mint undercuts many cable and fiber entry tiers and lands below other national 5G FWA offers, which typically range from $35 to $60 depending on mobile bundle eligibility.
New usage data shows AT&T subscribers are tapping into T-Mobileโ€™s Starlink-powered T-Satellite more than expected, signaling a rapid shift in how carriers and customers think about direct-to-device connectivity. Speedtest intelligence indicates T-Mobile users account for the majority of direct-to-device (D2D) connections to Starlink, roughly six in ten overall and more than seven in ten among devices reporting active service at connection time. The surprise is AT&Tโ€™s footprint: about a third of observed connections come from AT&T subscribers, while Verizonโ€™s share is minimal.
Apple has secured a five-year deal to stream every Formula 1 session in the U.S., a move that will reshape live-sports distribution, traffic patterns, and product strategy across the streaming and telecom ecosystem. Starting with the 2026 season, Apple TV becomes the exclusive U.S. home for Formula 1, covering every practice, qualifying, Sprint, and Grand Prix for Apple TV subscribers. Apple says select races and all practice sessions will be available free in the Apple TV app, extending reach beyond the paid tier. F1 TV Premium remains available in the U.S., delivered via an Apple TV subscription and included for subscribers.

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