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story category House Reviews 700 MHz Auction Results
Listens to concerns about a lack of competition in the wireless industry
04:25PM Tuesday Apr 15 2008 by KathrynV
tags: competition · fcc · wireless
The House Subcommittee on Telecommunications on the Internet today reviewed the results of the 700 MHz spectrum auction. Representatives from small wireless carriers spoke about their concerns that the auction reduced their ability to compete in the market by further empowering the large carriers. Representative Markey noted that women-owned and minority-owned businesses also failed to benefit from the auction. He added:
"There is no new national competitor to provoke new broadband competition, innovation, and consumer choice coming out of the auction. As a result, the wireless ‘3rd pipe’ to compete with the telephone and cable industry is proving either elusive — or simply allied with one of the two existing providers in much of the country. This is too cozy and not nearly competitive enough."
The recommendation is not to berate the FCC for its failures in the auction but to encourage the FCC to move into the future with an eye towards doing better in this area. There remains ongoing debate about what this should mean for the D-block spectrum which failed to sell at auction and now may be re-auctioned.

Related:
  1. White Space Device Testing Runs Into Trouble
  2. 700 MHz Auction Inches towards $20 Billion
  3. Verizon Nabs Most Valuable 700Mhz Spectrum
  4. So Much For The Talk of Open Wireless Networks
  5. 700Mhz Auction Winners Finally Talking
  6. Anti-Competition Concerns Ignite Spectrum Cap Debate
  7. Cyren Call Asks Rural Providers to Bid on D-Block
  8. FCC Proceeds Cautiously With White Space Testing
Forums » House Reviews 700 MHz Auction Results
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jinjimbob
Troy Mcclure

join:2001-11-13
Enumclaw, WA

Don't make it an auction then

Don't make it an auction then if they didn't want this to happen.
permalink · 2008-04-15 17:11:27 · Reply to this

halfband
Premium
join:2002-06-01
Huntsville, AL
·Comcast

edit:
April 15th, @05:27PM

Re: Don't make it an auction then

Your right. First a small company would have to pay the government a few billion for the rights to the spectrum. Then a few billion more for a national or even significant regional build out. All this before you get the first dime back from selling your service. What idiot would think that a small business was going to drop a few billion to go head to head with the deathstar?
--
Registered Bandwidth Offender #40812
permalink · 2008-04-15 17:23:19 · Reply to this
openbox9

join:2004-01-26
Navarre, FL		 Bingo!
There is no new national competitor to provoke new broadband competition, innovation, and consumer choice coming out of the auction.
Was that one of the objectives of the auction?
permalink · 2008-04-15 18:57:52 · Reply to this

MattE
Obama '08
Premium
join:2003-07-20
Jamestown, NC
edit:
April 15th, @05:14PM

Move with an eye toward the future?

So, ummm, let's just suck it up for the next 50-75 years until more prime spectrum is freed so we can hope the ILEC/MSO stranglehold is broken?

Ahhh, Government action at its finest folks.
permalink · 2008-04-15 17:14:34 · Reply to this

gaforces
United We Stand, Divided We Fall

join:2002-04-07
Santa Cruz, CA

Re: Move with an eye toward the future?

The license for the spectrum is for 15 years. They could change the rules for the next one and allocate the spectrum in a different manner.
permalink · 2008-04-15 20:11:54 · Reply to this

MattE
Obama '08
Premium
join:2003-07-20
Jamestown, NC
·North State Commun..
·Corporate Colocation

Re: Move with an eye toward the future?

said by gaforces See Profile :

The license for the spectrum is for 15 years. They could change the rules for the next one and allocate the spectrum in a different manner.
I didn't realize that. Thanks for the info.

Knowing that though, I doubt the Government would rip the specturm away from Verizon or AT&T after they likely spent billions to build a network that 100 million or so people use.
permalink · 2008-04-15 20:35:19 · Print · Reply to this

en102
Canadian, eh?

join:2001-01-26
Valencia, CA
·DSL EXTREME
·DSL EXTREME

Competition... only exists and the retal and mega corp level

quote:
Representative Markey noted that women-owned and minority-owned businesses also failed to benefit from the auction.
Most businesses that are not directly tied to communication and entertainment will not see any benefits,
For anyone wanting a piece of the action (minority or not) here's the one thing you need: MONEY and lots of it! Having power and influence (lobbiests) doesn't hurt either, and a business plan.
I'm sure that Oprah could open her own wireless MVNO and have a few million sign ups if she wanted.
--
Canada = Hollywood North
permalink · 2008-04-15 17:22:03 · Print · Reply to this
EPS

join:2008-02-13
Hingham, MA

Re: Competition... only exists and the retal and mega corp level

Why does it matter who owns the companies? (And technically speaking, aren't all major cellular companies except Alltel publicly owned, and aren't there women and minority stockholders?) Plenty of women and minorities work at Verizon, "the new" at&t, Sprint, and the rest.
permalink · 2008-04-15 17:51:25 · Reply to this

en102
Canadian, eh?

join:2001-01-26
Valencia, CA
·DSL EXTREME
·DSL EXTREME

edit:
April 15th, @06:04PM

Re: Competition... only exists and the retal and mega corp level

I totally agree... that's why I was responding to the original quote about the 'absence of miniority and women' listed in the original message.... These comapnies are all owned by share holders... Even the companies (media) that would benefit from doing business with these wireless companies are also owned by share holders. The only ones that aren't, are retail agent stores. Very few have the money to 'own' the kind of business outright, and wouldn't want to anyways... they'd own the parent company - Warren Buffet style.
--
Canada = Hollywood North
permalink · 2008-04-15 18:02:06 · Print · Reply to this
bicker

join:2007-05-10
Burlington, MA

Unreasonable Expectations

I agree that expecting some (small) new company to invest billions of dollars to break into a space that they have no experience in already is utterly unreasonable, and would end up not serving customers well either.

I think the members of Congress criticizing the results should put up or shut up: If they want to invest in such a (small) new company, they should do so themselves. I bet most wouldn't be so foolish with their own money.
permalink · 2008-04-16 06:15:42 · Reply to this
Forums » House Reviews 700 MHz Auction Results

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