Telecommunications
NAICS 517: U.S. telecommunications — wireless carriers, broadband deployment, BEAD funding, and 5G network trends.
Industry at a Glance
Sector-wide aggregates across all businesses classified under NAICS 517 (2017 classification frame). For specific sub-industries within this sector, see the individual reports below.
Industry Overview
Telecommunications (NAICS 517) covers establishments providing voice, data, and video transmission services through wired and wireless networks. The U.S. telecommunications market generated approximately $580 billion in revenue in 2023, dominated by three wireless carriers — AT&T, Verizon, and T-Mobile — that collectively serve over 300 million postpaid and prepaid subscribers. T-Mobile's 2020 merger with Sprint, approved by the DOJ with conditions requiring the creation of DISH Network as a fourth carrier, reshaped the wireless competitive landscape, though DISH has struggled to build its mandated nationwide 5G network and was acquired by EchoStar in 2024.
Fixed broadband is increasingly a fiber-optic race: AT&T Fiber has passed 27 million locations, while Verizon's Fios serves roughly 16 million premises. Regional fiber overbuilders including Frontier Communications (post-bankruptcy restructuring), Lumen Technologies (formerly CenturyLink), and Google Fiber are expanding in select metros. The FCC's Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) program, funded with $42.5 billion from the 2021 Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, allocates grants to states for closing broadband gaps in rural and underserved areas, with Louisiana, Virginia, and Texas among the first states to submit deployment plans. Net neutrality rules, reinstated by the FCC in April 2024 under Title II classification, face ongoing legal challenges in the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals.
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Industry Trends
The FCC's $42.5 billion BEAD program is the largest-ever federal broadband subsidy, with states including Louisiana, Virginia, and Texas finalizing plans to extend fiber and fixed wireless to unserved areas — defined as lacking 25/3 Mbps service — by 2028.
T-Mobile's 5G fixed wireless access product (Home Internet) has captured over 5 million subscribers since 2021, disrupting traditional cable broadband providers by offering $50/month service without installation, particularly effective in suburban and rural markets.
Starlink, SpaceX's low-earth-orbit satellite broadband service, has surpassed 3 million global subscribers and emerged as the primary competitive alternative in rural areas where terrestrial fiber deployment is uneconomical, though its $120/month residential pricing limits addressable market size.
The FCC's April 2024 reinstatement of net neutrality rules under Title II of the Communications Act reclassifies broadband providers as common carriers, prohibiting throttling and paid prioritization, though industry groups led by USTelecom have challenged the rules in the Sixth Circuit.
Open RAN (Radio Access Network) architecture, promoted by the O-RAN Alliance and adopted in pilot deployments by DISH/EchoStar and Rakuten-backed 1&1 in Germany, promises to reduce wireless network infrastructure costs by replacing proprietary vendor equipment from Ericsson and Nokia with interoperable commodity hardware.
Available Reports
1 industry report available for purchase under Telecommunications.
Specialty Reports Available on Request
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Frequently Asked Questions
What is NAICS 517? ▾
How did the T-Mobile/Sprint merger change the U.S. wireless market? ▾
What is the BEAD program and how much funding does it provide? ▾
What is net neutrality and what is its current legal status? ▾
How is Starlink competing with traditional broadband providers? ▾
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