The long-anticipated auction by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) for portions of the electromagnetic spectrum for advanced wireless devices resulted in bids totaling nearly $20 billion, a record for an FCC spectrum auction.
The so-called 700 MHz Auction, which lasted for 261 separate rounds of bidding, resulted in the awarding of 1090 separate wireless licenses for a total of $19.592 billion, nearly twice the amount anticipated in advance of the auction.
FCC Chairman Kevin J. Martin touted the auction results as a major win for new wireless provider entrants and small businesses both nationwide and in rural markets. In a press release issued by the Commission, Martin noted that bidders other than a nationwide incumbent won licenses in every market, providing the potential for an additional wireless “third-pipe” in every market, and that 69% of the licenses auctioned were awarded to a bidder other than a nationwide incumbent.
However, aside from the financial tally, the auction wasn’t an unqualified success for the Commission. A portion of the spectrum to be auctioned that was earmarked to be shared between a winning bidder and public safety users (labeled as D Block) attracted only a single bid and failed to sell. (In a decision issued following the close of the auction, the Commission decided to delay further efforts to auction the D Block, pending further study.)
In addition, the C Block, which will require licensees to open their network to devices and/or software sold by any manufacturer, received only slightly above the $4.6 billion reserve set by the Commission.
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