The proposes to use a statistically valid sample where carriers would be expected to conduct a certain amount of drive tests 'that is statistically appropriate for the area tested.' However, there is no indication of how an 'area' would be defined, which makes it difficult to assess the feasibility of developing a sample. Requiring that all carriers conduct such nationwide drive tests, especially on a regular basis, is simply too costly especially at a time when investment in 5G deployment is a top national priority. With respect to cost, AT&T estimates that to drive test just 25 percent of the square kilometers of its nationwide 4G LTE coverage would cost approximately $45 million each year and that drive testing only 10 percent of its coverage would still cost as much as $18 million/year. AT&T and T-Mobile complain about testing costĪT&T objected to the proposed drive-testing requirement in a filing to the FCC on Tuesday this week, saying that annual 'drive testing is not the proper solution for verifying nationwide coverage maps' and that there is 'potential difficulty in determining how to formulate a statistically valid sample for areas given the terrain variability nationwide.'ĪT&T complained about costs while further explaining its position: But Pai is moving ahead with plans to require more accurate maps as mandated by Congress. Small carriers that compete against the big three in rural areas previously had to conduct drive tests at their own expense in order to prove that the large carriers didn't serve the areas they claimed to serve.įCC Chairman Ajit Pai did not punish Verizon, T-Mobile, and US Cellular after finding that the carriers exaggerated their 4G coverage in official filings.

This could prevent repeats of cases in which carriers exaggerated their coverage in FCC filings, which can result in government broadband funding not going to the areas where it is needed most.

'In order to help verify the accuracy of mobile providers' submitted coverage maps, we propose that carriers submit evidence of network performance based on a sample of on-the-ground tests that is statistically appropriate for the area tested,' the FCC proposal issued in July 2020 said. Further Reading FCC tries to bury finding that Verizon and T-Mobile exaggerated 4G coverage

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