Intellectual property law
fromTheregister
3 days agoFCC foreign-router policy may snarl Wi-Fi 7 rollout
The US ban on foreign-made network routers is impractical, limiting consumer choice and delaying access to next-gen products like Wi-Fi 7.
A router is the hub that sends internet traffic from the modem to every connected device. Even with a fast plan, an outdated or weak router can throttle home internet speed, causing buffering, lag, and slow loading times. This often shows up when multiple people stream, game, or join video calls at the same time.
The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) added all consumer-grade routers made outside the US to a list of equipment seen as not secure enough for use, putting them on par with foreign-made drones, which were banned at the end of last year.
The opportunity is to have more devices that are smart, adopting AI and [highlighting] the evolution of the original cloud AI with complementary support happening at the edge. We are able to grow the performance of platforms. Two things are converging: from one side, AI models are working with better performance [with a] reduced number of parameters, [and] at the edge, you can see more and more inference happening.
Wholesale access has been inherently supported by the Broadband Forum's network architecture over the past 20 years, and this project takes the best practices from copper‑based broadband to reshape and evolve them for fiber and cloud networks.
Extreme Networks is investigating the acquisition of Ruckus Networks from CommScope. The deal could be worth more than $1 billion (€857 million). No decision has been made yet, and Extreme may decide not to proceed with the acquisition. This is according to Bloomberg, based on sources. At the close of trading on Monday, Extreme Networks had a market value of approximately $2.1 billion. CommScope shares rose 2.9 percent to $19.04, giving the company a market value of approximately $4.2 billion.
Edge computing is a type of IT infrastructure in which data is collected, stored, and processed near the "edge" or on the device itself instead of being transmitted to a centralized processor. Edge computing systems usually involve a network of devices, sensors, or machinery capable of data processing and interconnection. A main benefit of edge computing is its low latency. Since each endpoint processes information near the source, it can be easier to process data, respond to requests, and produce detailed analytics.
Ookla said the growing use of ChatGPT and other AI tools places much more demand on mobile networks than the typical activities of browsing social media and the web, watching videos, texting, and making the occasional phone call. As a result, more speed and expanded capabilities will be necessary. The report said advanced AI capabilities like AI-enabled glasses will put a particular strain on upload connections in the future.
Light-based internet provider Taara, which spun out of Alphabet's "moonshot" incubator last year, just launched Taara Beam to provide 25Gbps connectivity within cities over invisible beams of light - line of sight permitting. Unlike last year's Taara Lightbridge, which connects communities separated by water and mountains at distances up to 20km (over 12 miles), the shoebox-sized Beam can be mounted to street poles and roof tops for city-wide connectivity at distances up to 10km. The 8kg (less than 20 pounds) device typically consumes about 90W.
The upgraded speeds for GFiber include: The previous Core 1 Gig is now Core 3 Gig, priced at $70 per month. Core 3 is 3x the symmetrical speed of GFiber's initial internet offering and is still the same price it was in 2012. Home 3 Gig is now Home 5 Gig, for $100/month. Customers at this tier are seeing about a 67% increase in speeds and will receive the GFiber Multi-Gig Wi-Fi 7 router.
Though Starlink's market and capacity have grown sharply over the last year, the satellite broadband company's median speeds still fall short of the 100/20 Mbps benchmark established by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) in 2024, according to a new report from Ookla. The report - "2025 Global Satellite Broadband Performance Report" - was released yesterday. The report marked improvements in Starlink's cumulative network capacity, which has nearly doubled in the past year.