Defining competition

I’m finding it hard to understand the current leadership at the Federal Communications Commission. On one hand, over the past several years the FCC has basically rubber-stamped a handful of mega-acquisitions among wireless carriers, which resulted in the number of nationwide operators dwindling from six to four and eliminated a handful of regional carriers. On the other hand, FCC Chairman Kevin Martin has put a proposal on the table for the upcoming 700 MHz spectrum auction that would mandate some form of open access for a chunk of spectrum up for bid.
So, to recap, the FCC has allowed the number of wireless carriers to shrink, which one would think would be bad for consumer choice, while then announcing plans to open up a block of very valuable 700 MHz spectrum for access to any company or device, which sounds like it would be good for consumer choice.
Sure, Martin was not the man in charge when the recent carrier consolidations began in earnest, but he has been the top dog during the more recent deals, including the recombination of AT&T, whose break-up in the early 1980s was heralded as a landmark decision in providing consumers a telecommunications choice.
And of course, with what’s at stake in the 700 MHz auction, there is little doubt the auction’s rules are far from being set in stone as just about any company with wireless aspirations and deep pockets, though not necessarily both, will unleash its lobbying might in an attempt to influence the final rulemaking in their favor.
Since I am still fine tuning my time machine-stupid flux capacitor-I am not able to go back in time to perhaps suggest that maybe we not let Cingular acquire AT&T Wireless or Sprint to acquire Nextel, though the former deal seems to have worked out while the latter has yet to find its footing.
While I am still a bit skeptical of how an open-access mandate would actually work in the real world, with the rules for the 700 MHz auction as of yet to be written, maybe the FCC has a chance to turn the tide back to consumer choice. Though, if recent history has shown us anything, expectations and reality at the FCC can be two very different things.