‘The race to 5G is a race America must win’, Donald Trump says as US announces plans to accelerate high-speed wireless development
- Washington to auction largest ever radio spectrum to support 5G telecommunications
- Federal Communications Commission will devote US$20.4 billion to improve broadband internet in rural America
The United States, playing catch-up against foreign rivals including China, unveiled plans on Friday for the largest ever auction of radio spectrum to support the development of 5G, the next-generation mobile communications technology predicted to revolutionise the so-called internet of things.
US President Donald Trump and the Federal Communications Commission chairman, Ajit Pai, announced the December 10 auction in an event at the White House.
They also outlined a US$20.4 billion investment in a new Rural Digital Opportunity Fund to develop high-speed broadband networks into underserved US rural areas over the next 10 years.
“We cannot allow any other country to out-compete the United States in this powerful industry of the future,” Trump said. “We are leading by so much in so many different industries of that type, and we just can’t let that happen. The race to 5G is a race America must win.”
