[Ccarc] 700 Mhz auction ends...FCC is a financing tool for the Gov't.

[Tom Murray]

	700 MHz Auction Ends (3/18)
	

	
The 700 MHz auction ended Tuesday after 261 rounds, 38 bidding days and
total bids of nearly $19.6 billion. The D block of spectrum, which
includes requirements for a partnership with public safety to build a
nationwide broadband network, did not meet its minimum bid
requirements, meaning the spectrum will likely be reauctioned.
FCC officials said the commission will release the names of the winning
licensees within 10 days of the close of the auction. The nation’s
largest wireless carriers, AT&T Mobility and Verizon Wireless, are
expected to be the largest buyers. Only eight of the 1,099 licenses for
sale drew no bids. The
D block received only one bid of $472 million, well below the reserve
price of $1.33 billion, in the first round of the auction. The D block
received only one bid of $472 million, well below the reserve price of
$1.33 billion, in the first round of the auction. The Public Safety
Spectrum Trust (PSST), which holds 10 megahertz of 700 MHz spectrum and
would have worked with the winner of the D block, issued a statement
saying, “It is likely that the FCC will need to establish new
procedures regarding the auction of the D block.”“We
encourage (FCC) commissioners to act swiftly in examining the current
rules regarding the D block and the creation of a nationwide broadband
network for public safety,” said Harlin McEwen, chairman of the PSST.
“If changes are necessary, the FCC must make certain that the interests
of public safety remain at the top of the list. Only a public-private
partnership will provide an innovative solution that will permanently
solve our country’s continuing public-safety communications crisis, and
first responders have a vital role to play in any network designed for
their benefit.”“It
is unfortunate that some stand in the way of bringing state-of-the-art
communications capabilities to America’s first responders, even to the
point of demanding that public safety obligations be removed entirely
from the D block. Others have suggested that temporary regional patches
at huge expense to public safety could replace the innovation that
would come with the creation of a nationwide network built to meet
public safety’s needs. However, I am hopeful that decision makers in
Washington will see that these unconstructive comments are harmful to
those who are trusted to protect the public every day.”

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