With a new proposal contained in the House’s all-encompassing JOBS bill threatening to strip the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) of its power to hold spectrum auctions the way it deems fit, a number of wireless carriers recently rallied to preserve the FCC’s clout in spectrum auctions.
In a joint letter addressed to 20 senators and representatives, several wireless carriers – including Sprint Nextel, T-Mobile, Leap Wireless, C-Spire Wireless, Bluegrass Cellular, Atlantic Tele-Network, NorthwestCell, and the rival carrier trade group RCA – have called for the rejection of the proposal which would take away a very crucial power from the FCC.
What actually is at stake is the FCC’s power in terms of imposing conditions on any spectrum which it decides to sell off in future auctions. In fact, one specific clause in the sweeping JOBS Act chiefly aims at doing away with the commission’s ability to force any spectrum purchaser to offer the purchased spectrum to rival companies on a wholesale basis and honor the rules of Net neutrality.
Noting that the wholesale go-ahead will give the smaller companies a chance to sign fair roaming deals to make allowances for better coverage outside of their usual territory, the wireless carriers said in their letter that the proposal in the JOBS bill will not only “limit the FCC's ability to promote competition and a competitive wireless marketplace,” but would also “facilitate spectrum warehousing, inefficient use of scarce spectrum resources, and reduce spectrum auction revenues to the U. S.”