The big three US mobile operators are turning their attention to rural provision of 5G services earlier than was the case in the 4G lifecycle, driven by a combination of incentives, commitments and competitive threats. The incentives are coming from the controversial $20.4bn rural broadband fund that was approved by regulator FCC in February 2020. Commitments include the pledge by T-Mobile to build out 5G coverage in rural America as a condition for approval of its merger with Sprint. And operators have invested in spectrum that could help to cover rural areas, such as the huge outlay by Verizon on C-band auction to support 5G network expansion – though TMO has the most rural-appropriate spectrum with its national 600 MHz…