TELECOM VICE PRESIDENTS COMMITTEE Telecom Industry News
CWA in the News
CWA, AT&T Midwest and Mobility Bargaining Updates, 2/12
CWA District 1, CWAers Map Out Our Agenda to Fight for Stronger Communities in 2026, 2/10
Labor Notes, More Unions Are Saying ‘ICE Out’, 2/6
Wireless
Ars Technica, Verizon imposes new roadblock on users trying to unlock paid-off phones, 2/13
Fierce Network, T-Mobile’s new reporting metric policy turns heads, 2/12
Fierce Network, Verizon sues T-Mobile, alleging false advertising, 2/6
AT&T, AT&T Becomes the First and Only Carrier to Launch a Kid’s Smartphone – Designed by Kids and Parents, 2/6
Wireless Estimator, Crown Castle to cut tower and corporate workforce by 20% as DISH fallout accelerates restructuring, 2/5
Wireless Estimator, What AT&T’s 4Q results likely mean for macro tower owners and infrastructure contractors, 1/29
Wireline
Light Reading, Gigapower adds DojoNetworks to open access roster, 2/13
Arkansas Democrat Gazette, Little Rock’s Uniti Group planning another $1 billion in fiber-optic infrastructure this year, 2/7
Broadband Communities, TDS celebrates fiber expansion progress in Montana, 2/6
Fierce Network, AT&T’s $5.75B Lumen deal is now complete, 2/2
Other Corporate Developments
Light Reading, T-Mobile says FWA is here to stay and eyes more fiber M&A, 2/11
Fierce Network, FCC gives Amazon Leo the greenlight to launch more satellites, 2/11
Los Angeles Times, What to know about Elon Musk’s merger of SpaceX with his AI company, 2/10
Benton Institute, Thirty Years After the Telecommunications Act, We’re Still Working to Realize the Promise of Universal Service, 2/9
Fierce Network, Sampath is leaving Verizon at the end of the first quarter, 2/5
Light Reading, AT&T, Charter, Comcast named in ICE-related ‘Resist and Unsubscribe’ campaign, 2/4
Light Reading, AT&T and Verizon cut 17,700 jobs in 2025, with AI in its infancy, 2/3
Geek Wire, T-Mobile layoffs: Telecom giant cuts 393 jobs across Washington state, including VP roles, 2/2
CWA in the News
AT&T Midwest and Mobility Bargaining Updates
CWA, 2/12/2026
CWA District 4 Reaches TA with AT&T Midwest
On January 25, the CWA District 4 Bargaining Team reached a tentative agreement with AT&T Midwest.
The agreement, which covered approximately 4,400 CWA members, provides a robust compensation package with wage increases of 14.5% (15.3% compounded) over the four-year agreement, a $1,000 ratification bonus if ratified before March 12, improved retirement benefits, and a new healthcare plan with more options, all while maintaining a cost share that keeps more earnings in members’ pockets. [Full article]
CWAers Map Out Our Agenda to Fight for Stronger Communities in 2026
CWA District 1, 2/10/2026
Over the past several weeks, dozens of CWA members from locals throughout New Jersey and New York have come together over several sessions to map out our goals for the next several months, and how we plan to win for working families on the legislative and electoral fields this year. Legislative & Political Action Team members discussed some of the biggest issues facing working people right now like skyrocketing healthcare costs, Artificial Intelligence in the workplace, and how our tax dollars are being spent — and while they’re tough and sometimes divisive subjects, our central, unifying mission is to fight for a country where working people can afford to live, raise families, and retire with dignity, and where our public systems are strong enough to truly serve our communities.
NY and NJ LPATs at work
While those at the top try to divide and distract us, we’re focused on building a stronger union and stronger communities — not just defending what we have, but fighting for more. [Full article]
More Unions Are Saying ‘ICE Out’
By Alexandra Bradbury, 2/6/2026
Labor Notes
More unions across the country are taking a stand against Immigration and Customs Enforcement since the January 23 mass strike in Minneapolis and the January 24 killing of Alex Pretti, an intensive care nurse and union member.
Pretti was a member of the Government Employees (AFGE) Local 3669, working in the Minneapolis Veterans Affairs Hospital. His death at the hands of Border Patrol agents has shocked and outraged people across the country. Health care and V.A. workers have felt it even more keenly. [Full article]
Wireless
Verizon imposes new roadblock on users trying to unlock paid-off phones
Verizon unlocks have 35-day waiting period after paying off device plan online.
By Jon Brodkin, 2/13/2026
Ars Technica
Verizon this week imposed a new roadblock for people who want to pay off device installment plans early in order to get their phones unlocked. The latest version of Verizon’s device unlocking policy for postpaid customers imposes a 35-day waiting period when a customer pays off their device installment plan online or in the Verizon app.
Payments made over the phone also trigger a 35-day waiting period, as do payments made at Verizon Authorized Retailers. Getting an immediate unlock apparently requires paying off the device plan at a Verizon corporate store. [Full article]
T-Mobile’s new reporting metric policy turns heads
By Monica Alleven, 2/12/2026
Fierce Network
· During its Capital Markets Day this week, T-Mobile revealed it’s no longer going to report postpaid phone net additions on a quarterly basis
· Net phone additions provide an apples-to-apples comparison about how mobile network operators are performing
· T-Mobile said it wants to focus on “accounts” as it looks to areas beyond cell phone service for revenue
About mid-way through T-Mobile’s two+ hour Capital Markets Day presentation on Wednesday, CFO Peter Osvaldik dropped a bit of a bombshell, at least to this reporter’s ears: Beginning in Q1 2026, the company will no longer be reporting postpaid phone net adds. [Full article]
Verizon sues T-Mobile, alleging false advertising
By Monica Alleven, 2/6/2026
Fierce Network
· Verizon’s got a bone to pick with the way T-Mobile says it can save consumers $1,000/year over Verizon and AT&T
· Attempts were made to resolve their dispute through a self-regulatory process, but that was unsuccessful
· T-Mobile is sticking to its guns, saying the math shows it offers significant savings over its rivals
Frustrated with its inability to get T-Mobile to change its advertising through self-regulatory means, Verizon took its complaints to court this week, asserting that T-Mobile is manufacturing “mathematical fiction” to lure customers away from Verizon. [Full article]
AT&T Becomes the First and Only Carrier to Launch a Kid’s Smartphone – Designed by Kids and Parents
Introducing the AT&T amiGO™ Jr. Phone, a simple smartphone solution to help keep parents connected and kids protected
AT&T, 2/6/2026
Key Takeaways:
· AT&T is the first and only carrier to launch a smartphone made for kids, providing more choice and control for parents as they navigate the complex digital world for their kids.
· For 60% of parents with kids up to the age of 12, a smartphone is considered a safety essential. When the time comes to purchase a child’s first smartphone, the majority favor the simplicity of staying with their own wireless provider. We are meeting that customer demand, with the AT&T amiGO™ Jr. Phone.
· 70% of parents want their kids to have access to a smartphone for safety benefits – including access to calling in an emergency and real time location tracking – the AT&T amiGO™ Jr. Phone meets these needs and more. [Full article]
Crown Castle to cut tower and corporate workforce by 20% as DISH fallout accelerates restructuring
Wireless Estimator, 2/5/2026
Crown Castle’s first earnings report since outlining its transition to a “pure-play” tower operator delivered a sharp reset for employees and investors alike: the company said it will reduce its tower and corporate workforce by approximately 20%, tying the move to both its post-fiber operating model and the sudden loss of expected activity tied to DISH Wireless following the carrier’s payment default which has also been announced by American Tower and other key towercos as well as mid-tier tower owners
On the company’s fourth-quarter earnings call yesterday, CEO Chris Hillabrant said Crown Castle had already anticipated resizing the organization as it exits the fiber and small-cell business. Still, the DISH dispute forced management to move faster and go deeper. The reduction is expected to leave the company with roughly 1,250 full-time employees. [Full article]
What AT&T’s 4Q results likely mean for macro tower owners and infrastructure contractors
Wireless Estimator, 1/29/2026
AT&T’s fourth-quarter results and conference call yesterday were marketed as a fiber-and-convergence story. Still, the call also contained several macro-tower tells: continued wireless network modernization, spectrum deployment, and a multi-year service-revenue growth outlook that can’t be delivered without sustained macro performance.
CEO John Stankey framed AT&T’s strategy as a durable blend of fiber and wireless, calling the convergence model “a winning play both structurally and in the market.” For tower owners and contractors, the key isn’t the slogan—it’s what it implies operationally: more traffic concentration in fiber-rich footprints, more midband loading, and continued pressure to keep macro sites performing at a high level. [Full article]
Wireline
Gigapower adds DojoNetworks to open access roster
DojoNetworks, a company that provides managed services to apartment buildings and other types of multiple-dwelling units (MDUs), is the latest service provider to hook into Gigapower’s open access network.
By Jeff Baumgartner, 2/13/2026
Light Reading
DojoNetworks, a company that specializes in providing managed broadband and video services to apartment buildings and other types of multiple-dwelling units (MDUs), is the latest service provider to cut a deal to connect to Gigapower’s open access network.
Gigapower, a joint venture of AT&T and BlackRock that is initially building to about 1.5 million locations outside AT&T’s legacy wireline footprint, announced a similar deal with its first outside partner, Flume, late last year. [Full article]
Little Rock’s Uniti Group planning another $1 billion in fiber-optic infrastructure this year
By Lucas Dufalla, 2/7/2026
Arkansas Democrat Gazette
Uniti Group, Inc. plans to build out $1 billion worth of fiber-optic data infrastructure in 2026, company President and Chief Executive Officer Kenny Gunderman said in a recent interview.
On the heels of a merger that reunited Uniti and sister company Windstream, Gunderman spoke to the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette about the company’s outlook and plans. [Full article]
TDS celebrates fiber expansion progress in Montana
Company officials said crews are extending fiber in multiple Montana cities, including Helena, Billings, Butte, Great Falls and Missoula.
By Brad Randall, 2/6/2026
Broadband Communities
TDS Telecommunications has reached a milestone in Montana, announcing it has connected its 10,000th customer in the state as it ramps up an expansion of its fiber network.
The company marked the occasion at Helena’s Holter Museum of Art, where technicians completed the museum’s high-speed fiber installation and TDS presented a gift basket and a charitable donation to the institution. [Full article]
AT&T’s $5.75B Lumen deal is now complete
By Masha Abarinova, 2/2/2026
Fierce Network
· AT&T closed its deal to buy Lumen’s consumer fiber biz
· CEO John Stankey announced AT&T will bump its annual fiber build to 4M passings in 2026 and 5M passings in subsequent years
· Lumen can now pay off a chunk of its debt and fully focus on the AI and enterprise market
AT&T on Monday closed its $5.75 billion acquisition of Lumen’s Mass Markets fiber business, adding more than 1 million new fiber subscribers to AT&T’s total customer tally.
The deal, first announced in May 2025, will see AT&T expand its fiber footprint to 32 states, including more than 4 million new fiber passings in major cities such as Denver, Seattle and Salt Lake City. [Full article]
Other Corporate Developments
T-Mobile says FWA is here to stay and eyes more fiber M&A
T-Mobile counts on FWA and fiber broadband to boost customer and service revenue growth with switch to customer account reporting.
By Michelle Donegan, 2/11/2026
Light Reading
T-Mobile CEO Srini Gopalan sought to end the debate once and for all about whether fixed wireless access was an interim solution that will eventually be replaced by fiber, and updated targets for broadband growth, during the carrier’s Capital Markets Day presentation today.
“The days of asking the question, is this here to stay? Those are gone,” he said. [Full article]
FCC gives Amazon Leo the greenlight to launch more satellites
By Linda Hardesty, 2/11/2026
Fierce Network
· The FCC cleared Amazon Leo to launch 4,500 more low-Earth-orbit satellites
· In total, it’s looking like Amazon Leo will have an LEO constellation of more than 7,000 satellites
· Amazon Leo will also be allowed to launch satellites to cover the Earth’s polar regions
The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) yesterday granted Amazon Leo the authority to launch 4,500 more satellites.
Recently, Amazon Leo asked the FCC for permission to extend its deadline to launch 3,232 satellites until July 30, 2028. The FCC hasn’t ruled on that request, yet, but it’s generally expected to approve it. [Full article]
What to know about Elon Musk’s merger of SpaceX with his AI company
By Laurence Darmiento, 2/10/2026
Los Angeles Times
· SpaceX merges with xAI in a $1.25 trillion deal combining a profitable rocket firm with a cash-strapped AI startup burning billions monthly.
· The merger centers on launching up to one million satellites as AI data centers in orbit, powered by solar energy for global computing.
· Experts question the feasibility and timeline, citing technological challenges including radiation-resistant chips, heat dissipation and communication obstacles.
Elon Musk recently announced what seemed like an odd pairing of his companies: SpaceX was acquiring xAI, the artificial intelligence firm that also owns the social media platform X.
The merger combines a highly profitable rocket company with an AI startup that is burning through billions of dollars as it competes with OpenAI and other rivals for dominance in artificial intelligence. [Full article]
Thirty Years After the Telecommunications Act, We’re Still Working to Realize the Promise of Universal Service
Essential infrastructure should be governed not only by market forces but also by a commitment to the public interest
By Dr Revati Prasad, 2/9/2026
Benton Institute
Thirty years ago, in the Telecommunications Act of 1996, Congress reaffirmed a national commitment first articulated in 1934: communications services should be available to all Americans, without discrimination, and at just and reasonable rates. Lawmakers also recognized that universal service could no longer mean just plain old telephone service. In an emerging digital economy, the promise had to extend to what they called “advanced communications,” and we now popularly call internet access and broadband. Congress and the Clinton Administration recognized that an increasing level of basic connectivity needed to be available everywhere, affordable for everyone, and capable of supporting work, education, health care, and civic life. Although we’ve made incredible advances in universal service, the full promise remains unfulfilled. Twenty-two percent of U.S. adults lack broadband service at home, and 16 percent are “smartphone-only” internet users—relying on smartphones without fixed broadband to support work, education, and daily life.
Last week, I was in Chicago for the National Digital Inclusion Alliance’s annual conference. Since 2016, this conference has brought together practitioners who work every day to translate the promise of the 1996 Act into reality – helping people get online, stay online, and use the internet in ways that improve their lives. [Full article]
Sampath is leaving Verizon at the end of the first quarter
By Monica Alleven, 2/5/2026
Fierce Network
· The CEO of the Verizon Consumer Group was at one point widely viewed as the next CEO of the company
· Current CEO Dan Schulman appointed Alfonso Villanueva to take over Sampath’s job on an interim basis
· It’s unknown where Sampath will land next, but rest assured, he’s not going to be idle for long
Turns out, the reports earlier this week were spot on. Sowmyanarayan Sampath, who was thought to be next in line as CEO, is leaving Verizon.
“Sampath has agreed that now is the right time to step down from his role as CEO of the Verizon Consumer Group. He will stay with us through the end of the first quarter to ensure a smooth transition,” Verizon CEO Dan Schulman said in a news release today. [Full article]
AT&T, Charter, Comcast named in ICE-related ‘Resist and Unsubscribe’ campaign
A new campaign led by entrepreneur and investor Scott Galloway urges users to ditch services from companies that are ‘active enablers’ of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), including AT&T, Charter and Comcast.
By Nicole Ferraro, 2/4/2026
Light Reading
A new campaign, launched by entrepreneur and investor Scott Galloway, is encouraging people to unsubscribe from services supplied by telecom firms and other companies that are partnered with or otherwise supporting the work of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) in the US.
That includes “subscription-driven consumer tech companies we have identified as having outsized influence over the national economy and our president,” according to the Resist and Unsubscribe website, as well as consumer-facing companies the campaign has “identified as active enablers of ICE.” [Full article]
AT&T and Verizon cut 17,700 jobs in 2025, with AI in its infancy
US telco giants AT&T and Verizon cut another 7% of their combined headcount last year as their decade-old downsizing programs continued.
By Iain Morris, 2/3/2026
Light Reading
Among those who chronicle the relentless depletion of the telecom workforce, all eyes were on Verizon and new boss Dan Schulman, who entered his new office in October and immediately erected a makeshift guillotine, promising the US telco’s glum investors that 13,000 heads would soon roll. When results were published last week, as reported by Light Reading, they showed that 10,300 jobs had been cut from the total in the final three months of the year, leaving Verizon with 89,900 employees on New Year’s Eve.
But across the whole year, there was almost as much carnage at close rival AT&T, which avoided the same scrutiny. For the first time in ages, Verizon’s workforce grew slightly in early 2025 before Schulman replaced Hans Vestberg as CEO and launched his program of layoffs. This meant the net reduction in headcount for the full year was 9,700, according to Verizon’s financial statements. Over the same period, AT&T eliminated about 8,000 jobs, finishing the year with 133,000 employees. [Full article]
T-Mobile layoffs: Telecom giant cuts 393 jobs across Washington state, including VP roles
By Lisa Stiffler, 2/2/2026
Geek Wire
T-Mobile is laying off 393 workers in Washington as part of a new round of cuts, according to a filing with the state Employment Security Department released Monday morning.
More than 200 different job titles are impacted, according to the filing, including analysts, engineers and technicians, as well as directors and managers. [Full article]
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