Don’t laugh, and it’s not (apparently) fake news, unfortunately. Yes, the US government is considering going all socialist and nationalising the emerging 5G industry. No, we are not making this up. Please remember, this is Trump’s America where anything could – and often does – happen.

Our outlandish tale begins with a news scoop from the well-respected Axios news site, which obtained a copy of a 6-page PowerPoint presentation and a 24-page memo document, both produced (according to Axios) by a senior National Security Council official, and which were presented recently to senior officials at other agencies in the Trump administration. You can (and should) read the full story here.

The presentation calls for the federal government to create a centralised nationwide 5G network within three years – the preferred option is for this to be bought and paid for by the government (i.e. nationalisation), but they are also looking at an option whereby wireless providers build competing 5G networks to the government’s specification. The reason for doing so, according to the leaked documents, is China. Apparently, “China has achieved a dominant position in the manufacture and operation of network infrastructure,” and “China is the dominant malicious actor in the Information Domain.” Also, China’s Belt and Road initiative is frightening the life out of parts of the US administration.

Reuters also quotes a “senior administration official” as “confirming the gist” of the report, and that the option was being debated at a low level in the government and was “six to eight months away from being considered by the president himself”. However, the unnamed official then demonstrates an alarming lack of understanding of telecoms and 5G when he or she then tells Reuters: “We want to build a network so the Chinese can’t listen to your calls. We have to have a secure network that doesn’t allow bad actors to get in. We also have to ensure the Chinese don’t take over the market and put every non-5G network out of business.”

The whole plan in the leaked report is so full of holes and lacking in credulity as to beggar belief, and will no doubt be picked apart and criticised in the days to come. But the gist of it can be summarised from this extract:

“This next generation technology, combined with a concerted effort by public and private entities, can position the United States to leap ahead of global competitors and provide the American people with a secure and reliable infrastructure to build the 21st century equivalent of the Eisenhower National Highway System – a single, inherently protected, information transportation superhighway.”

It believes that with strong and focused leadership from the Government, along with the collaboration of public and private companies, the US could “commit to building a secure 5G network within three years”. Yes, just three years to build whilst contending with huge political and economic fallout. So how would it do it? The preferred option in the report is for single network, ideally controlled by the state:

“If the US were to build and run one physical network using the Mid Band (3.7GHz to 4.2GHz) spectrum it could lease back to carriers to sell as a service…. In the single block scenario, the network could be built with security as a foundational element enabling the securing of both government and civilian data. The network could also be built for resiliency from physical attack or natural disasters.”