Bell Atlantic Mobile purchased six 10-megahertz personal communications services licenses from Rivgam Communications L.L.C. to increase voice capacity and prepare for the onslaught of high-speed data applications.
The cellular operator purchased D- and E-block licenses in Buffalo, N.Y., Philadelphia, Atlantic City, Washington, D.C., and two in Baltimore. The purchase price was not disclosed.
Analysts believe cellular operators will be at a disadvantage to their PCS counterparts when it comes time to load up data subscribers. Cellular operators hold 25 megahertz of spectrum in each market and are loaded with voice subscribers. Three-year-old PCS carriers have plenty of capacity and hold 30 megahertz of spectrum.
“Cellular operators are worried,” said John Bensche, U.S. wireless services analyst with Lehman Brothers Inc. in New York. “They don’t have enough spectrum for data. The premise is that cellular will have to slow down voice to cut over to data.”
“We do have issues with data,” said Bell Atlantic spokeswoman Andrea Linsky. “We feel the spectrum could help us increase voice capacity and provide capabilities for higher speed data … We would be interested in adding more spectrum as it makes business and strategic sense to do so.”
AT&T Wireless Services Inc. and BellSouth Corp. hold a large number of D- and E-block licenses in reserve. Other cellular operators may look to companies like Rivgam who appear to be waiting for eager buyers of spectrum licenses never built out. Rivgam could not be reached for comment by RCR press time.
