The 5G Wireless Future and the Role of the Federal Government

According to telecom industry experts, the next generation of wireless broadband known as 5G promises to deliver unprecedented speed and data capacity to wireless consumers. Whether federal regulators’ efforts to allocate spectrum will ultimately support the development of 5G technology and encourage an environment of permissionless innovation in the wireless industry remains to be determined.

To provide insight into the current spectrum policy landscape, Lawrence E. Strickling, Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Communications and Information and Administrator of the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA), discussed the federal government’s efforts to increase spectrum availability for wireless broadband. A panel of experts from the government and private sector reflected on the Assistant Secretary’s remarks and discuss future spectrum management challenges and how to best empower 5G. Harold Furchtgott-Roth, former FCC Commissioner and Director of Hudson Institute’s Center for the Economics of the Internet, moderated the event.

Read Lawrence E. Strickling's remarks.