Verizon AT&TWednesday marked the end of a long process in which both operators invested billions of dollars in equipment and spectrum to improve their 5G networks.

On Wednesday, the networks were lit using C-band wavelengths to reach large areas of the country. This will allow for wireless service which should be significantly faster than 4G.

Verizon claims that 90 million customers will have access to 5G services this month, in cities like New York City, Los Angeles, and San Francisco. AT&T said it plans to cover as many as 75 million people with its C-band network by the end of the year.

Both carriers have made major investments in 5G technology through this rollout. Verizon spent $45.5 million in a government auction last yearAT&T to obtain the right to use the wavelengths for its network. AT&T spent more than $23 billion. The companies have spent billions more to build networks and put equipment in cell towers.

“We’ve invested — just to get the spectrum, some $40-odd billion. We also needed to put money in the kitty for clearing the spectrum. “So you know that we are looking at $53 billion,” Verizon CTO Kyle Malady said to CNBC. According to him, Verizon will invest $10 billion each year over the next three decades in its network construction.

T-MobileThe third largest carrier is T-Mobile, which has been offering “mid-band 5G” since 2020, using different spectrum from the 2.5GHz band that it purchased when it acquired Sprint. T-Mobile claims that its network serves 186 million customers in the U.S.

The C-band networks that went online Wednesday were different. The new wavelengths between 2.7 and 3.99GHz are available and can travel long distances. They also have enough data to allow for faster internet connectivity.

Because of their unique wavelength properties, they have a high market price.

“It’s fantastic right down to the middle. Malady explained that you have tremendous bandwidth and the spectrum propagates well. The signal also passes through buildings. I give credit to U.S. government for putting a lot spectrum up for sale. Rarely does this happen. This is why we bid so hard in order to win this auction.

Although the C-band networks were to have been turned on by December, delays in rollout occurred twice due to Federal Aviation Administration fears that the wavelengths might interfere with instruments used to safely land.

Verizon and AT&T both said on Tuesday that they would delay launching the service near airportsWhile these issues have been resolved, the new networks of their members would still be active everywhere.

“We are frustrated by the FAA’s inability to do what nearly 40 countries have done, which is to safely deploy 5G technology without disrupting aviation services, and we urge it do so in a timely manner,” an AT&T spokesperson said in a statement on Tuesday.

Now Verizon and AT&T will need to show that these investments can pay off in the form of better wireless service to encourage customers to opt for more expensive 5G plans and open new markets, such as households replacing cable internet access.

Where is the 5G return? Credit Suisse analysts asked this last October. According to Credit Suisse analysts, October 2012 was a difficult month.

Credit Suisse analyst Douglas Mitchelson said that 5G “defensively assists networks to keep up with traffic, consumer expectations, but it isn’t the factor pulling consumers up operators”

Verizon earlier in the month announced new plans include 5G service with unlimited data. AT&T unlimited plans also include access to 5G service.

The following phones are compatible with the new network AppleiPhone 12 and iPhone 13 newer Samsung Galaxy phones and Google Pixel 6. A plan with 5G will be required for all users.