A broadband industry group has petitioned the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) for a waiver to the agency’s recently-enacted ban on wireless networking routers made outside the United States.
In a filing made with federal regulators this week, NCTA – The Internet & Television Association (NCTA) argued the ban on foreign-made wireless routers has the potential to cause disruptions in their business by creating a shortage of readily-available devices leased to their broadband consumers.
In March, the FCC issued a sweeping ban on wireless routers made outside the U.S., including those with parts sourced overseas. While the ban didn’t cover wireless routers already sourced by retailers and broadband companies, it did prohibit the import of nearly all new consumer routers and most devices earmarked for enterprise use. The FCC cited unspecified security concerns as the core reason for the ban.
Telecommunications providers typically purchase equipment leased to consumers and small businesses in bulk, and those devices usually originate from China, Thailand, South Korea or another country, including Wi-Fi gateways — modems that are combined with wireless routers. According to data released by Parks Associates last year, more than 70 percent of Americans use wireless gateways supplied by their broadband Internet provider.
In recent years, broadband companies have made it extremely easy for customers to lease their equipment by dropping monthly rental fees and unlocking perks like unlimited data use. But the restrictions imposed by the FCC have the potential to create supply chain bottlenecks that could prevent some ISPs from offering faster data speeds and the latest wireless technology in the future, and might even result in some companies running out of current equipment to lease to customers.
Last month, AT&T raised this concern in a petition for an expedited waiver covering its broadband equipment, which the FCC’s Office of Engineering and Technology (OET) granted. Likewise, the NCTA has asked the FCC to extend its members the same courtesy.
The waiver being sought by NCTA would allow its member broadband services — among them, Comcast, Cox Communications, Charter, CableLabs and GCI — to make two changes to existing and future routers supplied from overseas: It lets NCTA members “substitute certain substrate components in existing router designs” to allow those devices to continue being manufactured, shipped to and distributed within the U.S., and “take the steps necessary to swap the memory used in existing design.”
Ordinarily, federal rules do not allow equipment manufacturers to change components in radio devices, including wireless routers, once they are approved by the FCC unless the manufacturer or importer of a device repeats the process for certification. The waiver obtained by AT&T, and being sought by the NCTA, allows for those changes without having to repeat the certification process.
“NCTA and its member companies share the U.S. government’s commitment to enhancing device security and ensuring the trustworthiness of American communications infrastructure,” the NCTA wrote in its petition. “Like AT&T, NCTA members are encouraging their suppliers to quickly pursue required onshoring, and, in the meantime, seek Conditional Approvals for Covered Routers as necessary.”
The memory issue is perhaps the most-critical of the two points: Spurred by the quick development of artificial intelligence, semiconductor chip and memory producers have shifted their manufacturing from consumer and enterprise-grade solutions to accommodate the needs of large tech companies installing massive data centers for their AI products.
That has created a significant shortage of chips and memory used for other applications — everything from smart TVs to Apple computers like the Mac Mini and the new, low-cost MacBook Neo. Wireless routers are no different, and the FCC’s blanket ban on foreign-made routers will only make device supply issues worse.
It isn’t clear when or if the FCC’s OET will act on the petition.
