https://www.channelfutures.com/wp-content/themes/channelfutures_child/assets/images/logo/footer-new-logo.png
  • Home
  • Technologies
    • Back
    • SDN/SD-WAN
    • Cloud
    • RMM/PSA
    • Security
    • Telephony/UC/Collaboration
    • Cable
    • Mobility & Wireless
    • Fiber/Ethernet
    • Data Centers
    • Backup & Disaster Recovery
    • IoT
    • Desktop
    • Artificial Intelligence
    • Analytics
  • Strategy
    • Back
    • Mergers and Acquisitions
    • Channel Research
    • Business Models
    • Distribution
    • Technology Solutions Brokerages
    • Sales & Marketing
    • Best Practices
    • Vertical Markets
    • Regulation & Compliance
  • MSP 501
    • Back
    • Complete 2023 MSP 501 Rankings
    • 2023 MSP 501 50-1
    • 2023 MSP 501 100-51
    • 2023 MSP 501 150-101
    • 2023 MSP 501 200-151
    • 2023 MSP 501 250-201
    • 2023 MSP 501 300-251
    • 2023 MSP 501 350-301
    • 2023 MSP 501 400-351
    • 2023 MSP 501 450-401
    • 2023 MSP 501 501-451
    • NextGen 101 Rankings
  • Intelligence
    • Back
    • Galleries
    • Podcasts
    • From the Industry
    • Reports/Digital Issues
    • Webinars
    • White Papers
  • Channel Futures TV
  • EMEA
  • Channel Chatter
    • Back
    • People on the Move
    • New/Changing Channel Programs
    • New Products & Services
    • Industry Honors
  • Resources
    • Back
    • Channel Futures 20: Top Tech Providers
    • Advisory Boards
    • Industry Organizations
    • Our Sponsors
    • Advertise
    • 2023 Editorial Calendar
  • Awards
    • Back
    • 2023 MSP 501
    • 2023 NextGen 101
    • Channel Influencers
    • Circle of Excellence
    • DE&I 101
    • Technology Advisor 101 (TA 101)
    • Channel Leaders Lists
  • Events
    • Back
    • 2024 CP Expo Call for Speakers
    • Channel Futures Leadership Summit
    • MSP Summit
    • CP Conference & Expo
    • Channel Partners Europe
    • Channel Partners Event Coverage
    • Webinars
    • Industry Events
  • About Us
  • DE&I
Channel Futures
  • NEWSLETTER
  • Home
  • Technologies
    • Back
    • SDN/SD-WAN
    • Cloud
    • RMM/PSA
    • Security
    • Telephony/UC/Collaboration
    • Cable
    • Mobility & Wireless
    • Fiber/Ethernet
    • Data Centers
    • Backup & Disaster Recovery
    • IoT
    • Desktop
    • Artificial Intelligence
    • Analytics
  • Strategy
    • Back
    • Mergers and Acquisitions
    • Channel Research
    • Business Models
    • Distribution
    • Technology Solutions Brokerages
    • Sales & Marketing
    • Best Practices
    • Vertical Markets
    • Regulation & Compliance
  • MSP 501
    • Back
    • Complete 2023 MSP 501 Rankings
    • 2023 MSP 501 50-1
    • 2023 MSP 501 100-51
    • 2023 MSP 501 150-101
    • 2023 MSP 501 200-151
    • 2023 MSP 501 250-201
    • 2023 MSP 501 300-251
    • 2023 MSP 501 350-301
    • 2023 MSP 501 400-351
    • 2023 MSP 501 450-401
    • 2023 MSP 501 501-451
    • NextGen 101 Rankings
  • Intelligence
    • Back
    • Galleries
    • Podcasts
    • From the Industry
    • Reports/Digital Issues
    • Webinars
    • White Papers
  • Channel Futures TV
  • EMEA
  • Channel Chatter
    • Back
    • People on the Move
    • New/Changing Channel Programs
    • New Products & Services
    • Industry Honors
  • Resources
    • Back
    • Channel Futures 20: Top Tech Providers
    • Advisory Boards
    • Industry Organizations
    • Our Sponsors
    • Advertise
    • 2023 Editorial Calendar
  • Awards
    • Back
    • 2023 MSP 501
    • 2023 NextGen 101
    • Channel Influencers
    • Circle of Excellence
    • DE&I 101
    • Technology Advisor 101 (TA 101)
    • Channel Leaders Lists
  • Events
    • Back
    • 2024 CP Expo Call for Speakers
    • Channel Futures Leadership Summit
    • MSP Summit
    • CP Conference & Expo
    • Channel Partners Europe
    • Channel Partners Event Coverage
    • Webinars
    • Industry Events
  • About Us
  • DE&I
    • Newsletter
  • REGISTER
  • MSPs
  • VARs / SIs
  • Agents
  • Cloud Service Providers
  • Channel Partners Events
 Channel Futures

Regulation & Compliance


Sprint’s Plan to Shut Down Clearwire WiMAX Network Prompts Lawsuit

  • Written by Josh
  • October 15, 2015
With Sprint planning to shut down its WiMAX network, the non-profits allege hundreds of thousands of end users could be disconnected from broadband access.

Josh LongSix nonprofit organizations that rely on Sprint’s WiMAX broadband network to serve schools, libraries and nonprofits for $10 per month through projects known as Mobile Beacon and Mobile Citizen have sued the company in Massachusetts state court.

The Overland Park, Kansas-based carrier has announced plans to shut off the network by Nov. 6 in a move that would impact more than 300,000 Americans, but Sprint hasn’t provided a way to move the community of 429 schools, 61 libraries and 1,820 nonprofit organizations to another network, according to plaintiffs’ press release announcing the lawsuit.

The WiMAX network is the creation of Clearwire, a company that bled losses for a number of years and was acquired by Sprint in 2013. The acquisition closed seven years after the nonprofit entities struck spectrum access agreements with Clearwire.

Sprint has been transitioning its WiMAX customers to 4G LTE, the predominant wireless technology used in the United States and abroad.

“As Sprint continues to shut down the Clearwire network, it leaves most of plaintiffs’ customers with old devices on a network that is impaired and being phased out and no path to timely substitute a service,” the lawsuit alleged. “When the Clearwire network is completely shut down, the vast majority of plaintiffs’ customers will have no Internet service at all. So abandoned, plaintiffs’ customers will have no alternative but to pay Sprint or another provider the standard customary rates for devices and service, which many of them cannot afford to do.”

Plaintiffs hold 63 licenses from the Federal Communications Commission to operate Educational Broadband Service channels. The nonprofit entities provided Clearwire access to the commercial spectrum capacity of their channels in exchange for the rights to use Clearwire’s broadband network.

But with Sprint planning to shut down its WiMAX network, the nonprofits claimed hundreds of thousands of end users could be disconnected from broadband access.

“The long-term ripple effects of losing the Internet to our students would be immeasurable,” said Brian Blodgett, a teacher at West High School in Salt Lake City. “West has more than 2,500 students, 97 percent of whom are eligible for free or reduced lunch. Students lacking access to the baseline educational benefits the Internet affords today could not compete to gain admission to colleges, therefore losing their ability to compete in the workplace.”

Faced with the impending shutdown, plaintiffs reached an interim service agreement with Sprint that was intended to mitigate disruption of services; however, Sprint has imposed a broadband plan on the licensees that “deliberately slows speeds down drastically from …

… an average download of 6-8 Mbps to 256 Kbps after just 6 GB of capacity is used in a month,” according to the lawsuit. The complaint, filed Wednesday in Massachusetts Superior Court, also alleges Sprint has breached the Clearwire spectrum agreements by using the spectrum for use in its own commercial network without the plaintiffs’ consent.

Sprint Responds to Lawsuit

“This is about a contract dispute. Simply put, the reality of this situation is that Sprint is trying to keep this service on, not turn it off,” Sprint spokeswoman Stephanie Vinge Walsh said in an email to Channel Partners. “The fact is, Sprint has gone to great effort to work with all WiMAX users to transition WiMAX accounts to LTE, for the express purpose of improving the consumer broadband experience, not shutting it off. And we have been very successful at transitioning the majority of these accounts. But the transition cannot take place without the cooperation of each licensee.”

Walsh said Mobile Beacon and Mobile Citizen could have transitioned customers months ago to LTE, as have other licensees.

“We have gone to great effort to work with the Mobile Beacon and Mobile Citizen to transition WiMAX accounts to LTE, but the transition cannot take place without the cooperation of the licensees, and the recent conduct is not cooperative nor in the spirit of good faith,” she said. “We have repeatedly made attempts to discuss with them how we can best meet their end users’ needs and resolve this matter. But instead of working it out like reasonable partners, they chose to file a complaint.”

Tags: Agents Mobility & Wireless Regulation & Compliance

Most Recent


  • Fortinet team at Ingram Micro One Solutions Showcase
    Ingram Micro One Expo Hall: AWS, Veeam, T-Mobile, More
    See faces from Ingram Micro's supplier community at the distributor's event in Nashville.
  • Government shutdown worries security experts
    Possible Government Shutdown Has Cybersecurity Experts Worried
    Vulnerabilities may persist or go unaddressed during a shutdown.
  • Blue Mantis deal with New England Patriots
    Blue Mantis Scores Big with the New England Patriots
    Blue Mantis scores a touchdown with the New England Patriots, winning a deal to provide a full suite of IT services to the Kraft Group.
  • Sanjib Sahoo on stage talking Xvantage at Ingram Micro One 2023
    'Anywhere, Anytime': Ingram Takes Xvantage Platform Mobile
    Ingram Micro executives say they're making incremental changes with the digital platform to reduce friction.

Leave a comment Cancel reply

-or-

Log in with your Channel Futures account

Alternatively, post a comment by completing the form below:

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Related Content

  • White House
    White House Urges Companies to Take Ransomware Attacks More Seriously
  • Security Vulnerability
    Older Fortinet Vulnerabilities Lead to Attack on Local Government Office
  • IPO
    iboss Could Join KnowBe4, Darktrace, Datto, Others in Tech IPO Onslaught
  • oil pipeline
    Colonial Pipeline Attack Leads to New Pipeline Industry Regulations

Upcoming Events

View all

Channel Futures Leadership Summit

October 30, 2023 - November 2, 2023

Channel Partners Conference & Expo

March 11, 2024 - March 14, 2024

Channel Futures Leadership Summit 2024

September 17, 2024 - September 19, 2024

Galleries

View all

ScanSource CEO Mike Baur ‘Not in a Hurry’ to Find New Intelisys Leaders

September 28, 2023

2023 Channel Futures DE&I 101: Dedication, Determination and Drive

September 28, 2023

Ingram Micro One Expo Hall: AWS, Veeam, T-Mobile, More

September 28, 2023

Industry Perspectives

View all

Top 10 Insights from the 2023 MSP 501

September 29, 2023

Public Sector Sales Show Promise for Channel Partners

September 29, 2023

Partners Balance Multicloud Opportunity, Complexity

September 25, 2023

Webinars

View all

MSP 501: Leadership in Cybersecurity

October 19, 2023

DE&I: Find the Balance that Works for You

September 7, 2023

Above and Beyond with the NextGen 101ers

August 30, 2023

White Papers

View all

6 UCaaS Reseller Challenges and How Real World Businesses Solved Them

February 1, 2023

Frost Radar: North American UCaaS Market, 2022

February 1, 2023

The Complete Guide to White-Label UCaaS for Reseller Success

February 1, 2023

Channel Futures TV

View all

Coffee with Craig and James Episode 129: ZLH Enterprises

Coffee with Craig and James Episode 128: Channel Partner Strategies Intelligence Service

August 25, 2023

Coffee with Craig and James Episode 127: Expereo, Movie Night Returns

August 18, 2023

Coffee with Craig and James Episode 126: ARG

July 28, 2023

MSP 501

The industry's largest and most comprehensive partner awards program.

Newsletters and Updates

Sign up for The Channel Report, Channel Futures Update, MSP 501 Newsletter and more.

Live Channel Events

Get the latest information on the next industry-leading Channel Partners event.

Galleries

Educational slide shows and images from live events.

Media Kit And Advertising

Want to reach our audience? Access our media kit.

DISCOVER MORE FROM INFORMA TECH

  • Channel Partners Events
  • Telecoms.com
  • MSP 501
  • Black Hat
  • IoT World Today
  • Omdia

WORKING WITH US

  • Contact
  • About Us
  • Advertise
  • Newsletter

FOLLOW Channel Futures ON SOCIAL

  • Privacy
  • CCPA: “Do Not Sell My Data”
  • Cookie Policy
  • Terms
Copyright © 2023 Informa PLC. Informa PLC is registered in England and Wales with company number 8860726 whose registered and Head office is 5 Howick Place, London, SW1P 1WG.
This website uses cookies, including third party ones, to allow for analysis of how people use our website in order to improve your experience and our services. By continuing to use our website, you agree to the use of such cookies. Click here for more information on our Cookie Policy and Privacy Policy.
X