WASHINGTON-The mobile-phone industry said the Federal Communications Commission is misguided in proposing to limit small-business bidding benefits to top carriers at this June’s advanced wireless services auction.
CTIA, the mobile-phone carrier association, said the FCC proposal discriminates against large in-region wireless operators and small- business applicants-also called designated entities-that may want to partner with them in the hope of buying an AWS license at the auction, set for June 29. As result, CTIA said wireless competitors of in-region cellular operators as well as wireline carriers and even non-communications firms will have an unfair advantage at the auction.
However, the FCC also is considering extending DE restrictions to other large telecom- and tech-related corporations.
“The commission proposes to do this without evidence of a widespread problem of market concentration, that DE partnering is a cause of such concentration, or that discriminating against larger in-market wireless providers would remedy the alleged problem,” CTIA told the FCC. “Indeed, the idea that undue concentration exists is undercut by the simple fact that a large incumbent carrier could directly acquire all of the licenses in the AWS auction.”
Democratic Commissioners Jonathan Adelstein and Michael Copps having been pushing for stricter DE rules, viewing the current regulation as a huge loophole exploited by large wireless companies and others at the expense of small businesses and entrepreneurs.
The Minority Media and Telecommunications Council said it backs the FCC on prohibiting bidding credits and other benefits to DEs with ties to in-region wireless carriers, but does not support having such a ban extended to DEs with ties with other large communications or non-communications companies.
“Deterring DE program manipulation would make bidding credits more meaningful for legitimate small and minority businesses in the AWS auction,” said the MMTC. “The AWS auction represents the best opportunity in the foreseeable future for small and minority businesses to acquire the ability to provide broadband services. Yet unless the DE rules are modified as proposed in the [FCC proposal], the largest incumbent national wireless carriers will have the ability to structure well-capitalized DEs with the same access to AWS auction bidding credits as the legitimate small and minority companies.”
In 1993, Congress directed the FCC to create new wireless license opportunities for minorities, women, small businesses and rural telephone companies. But the program was short lived. The Supreme Court drastically curbed government affirmative-action programs in 1995. Thus, minorities now must qualify for DE benefits as small businesses.
MetroPCS Communications Inc., whose flat-rate pricing scheme has attracted more than 2 million subscribers in various markets, threw its support behind the FCC’s attempt to tighten DE guidelines. But it rejected the notion rules are needed to curb fraud. Rather, calling itself one of the DE success stories, the carrier said new regulations are needed because Congress mandated wireless licenses be distributed among a wide variety of applicants.
Most of the nation’s 200 million wireless subscribers are served by the four national operators.
