Arkansans love their mobile phones. Recent data shows that approximately 35 percent of Arkansas' population does not have a landline telephone and relies exclusively on wireless service.
Consumers have come to rely on wireless services for many of their communications needs, but for broadband, Arkansas is only the 48th most-connected state in America.
As demand for wireless services continues to increase within our state, wireless companies need clear and consistent policies in place that will ensure continued growth in the wireless industry. Local governments regularly fight against proposals to build telecommunications towers, so wireless carriers are left with increasingly limited options for placing their antennas close to where people live, work and play. There is a clear disconnect between the percentage of Arkansans solely relying on wireless service and the increasingly limited options for improving and expanding wireless coverage.
Arkansas needs to be innovative in finding solutions because consumers are demanding ubiquitous service. One solution is allowing wireless carriers to have access to utility poles in order to enhance the delivery of dependable wireless services across our state.
Utility poles line the streets that we drive on to go to work, visit family and friends, and go shopping. We don't really give them much thought, but utility poles are critical in the delivery of energy and communications services. And existing policies that dictate who can attach to utility poles are creating a roadblock for the delivery of more robust broadband services in Arkansas.
Wireless carriers' inability to attach to utility poles compromises the delivery of wireless services to Arkansas consumers. Placing wireless antennas at the top of poles enables wireless signals to travel further. Stronger wireless signals mean greater access to reliable wireless services. It also creates a stronger, more sustainable business environment for our state's wireless industry.
The Arkansas Public Service Commission will take up the issue of utility-pole attachments and decide whether the same rates that apply to wired communications carriers will be applied to the wireless industry. The commission will also decide whether to facilitate routine access to utility poles for wireless carriers, or leave in place the current approach that has failed to encourage broadband growth.
The right answers to these questions will help draw investment into Arkansas and spur broadband growth in Arkansas as well.
According to a 2011 study conducted by the Arkansas Association of Educational Administrators, 80 percent of district administrators experienced problems with bandwidth, and 78 percent want to implement technology initiatives but cannot do so due to bandwidth limitations.
Studies show that for every 1 percent increase in broadband saturation, employment increases 0.2 to 0.3 percent. The more people we are able to connect, the better our state's economic outlook--and that of all Arkansans.
Utilizing a broadband connection, small businesses can communicate and collaborate in ways not otherwise possible and make the world their marketplace. Broadband connections enable small businesses to lower startup costs, achieve operational scale more rapidly and access new market opportunities.
Small businesses that adopt mobile broadband see distinct results relative to those that do not: Their revenue grows twice as fast and their work force grows eight times as fast.
Critics say that the wireless industry wants Arkansas to adopt a pole rate that they allege will not properly compensate pole owners. Let's not overlook the fact that the pole rate the wireless industry supports has been in use across the country for decades, and courts have found it reasonable.
Critics also say that wireless antennas on utility poles will impair reliability of electricity, but that is simply a scare tactic. The cost rules that have been put in place for wired communications carriers should be no different than the cost rules that apply to wireless carriers. Similarly, the rules that govern wireless access to utility poles should make access for wireless carriers as easy as it is for wired carriers. Both provide the same kinds of services and ensure that consumers are able to stay connected.
Getting Arkansans connected and opening doors to economic growth should be a priority for our policymakers. With the right approach, the Public Service Commission can ensure that more of our citizens have the ability to access wireless broadband. Arkansas is also perfectly positioned to leverage the wireless industry as an economic driver. And the resulting jobs and economic security that will be produced by the wireless industry can be firmly planted within our communities, helping to elevate those that are underserved.
I urge the commission to not maintain the existing environment that stifles consumer connectivity and wireless carriers' ability to do business in our state, and instead embrace new technologies that will bring our communications services into the 21st century.
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Sylvester Smith is an attorney, entrepreneur, and small-business advocate.
Editorial on 08/29/2015