The FCC has designated Boston, Massachusetts and Raleigh, North Carolina as new innovation zones to allow for advanced wireless communications and network innovation research. The FCC has also expanded the existing New York City and Salt Lake City innovation zones, which have served as centers of city-based research.
FCC-established innovation zones are areas in which qualified experimental program licensees can test new advanced technologies, 5G technologies, and prototype networks outside of a traditional laboratory setting or small campus. Managed by the National Science Foundation’s Platforms for Advanced Wireless Research, these zones are intended to spur development and integration of 5G network and Open RAN technologies.
