The Federal Communications Commission set Jan. 16 for the start of the 700 MHz auction, and asked for public comment on competitive bidding procedures for the 1,099 wireless licenses up for grabs. The agency will employ anonymous bidding as a safeguard against anti-competitive behavior...
M2Z Networks Inc. said it will take the Federal Communications Commission to court to force the agency to consider its request for 25 megahertz of vacant spectrum.The Silicon Valley-based outfit applied for the spectrum more than a year ago, vowing to deliver free broadband...
THE FCC'S RULES FOR NEXT YEAR'S auction of 700 MHz spectrum could change the game substantially for wireless content owners and application developers. Then again, maybe not.Chairman Kevin Martin last week seemed to avoid drawing the ire of any of the major players-or would-be...
WHILE THE FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION AND OTHERS CELEBRATED anticipated public-safety and wireless benefits of last week's 700 MHz auction rules decision, skeptics question whether the action will indeed produce a competitor to the Bell telephone-cable TV broadband duopoly and a strong commercial entity willing...
THE FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION LAST WEEK approved 700 MHz rules to foster the creation of a nationwide public-safety/commercial broadband network and introduce new devices and applications in a wireless space tightly controlled by four national operators.The FCC designated for auction a nationwide 10-megahertz spectrum...
Sprint Nextel Corp. is pulling out of the joint venture it formed with four cable companies to participate in the Advanced Wireless Services spectrum auction last year, but said the move has long been planned and does not reflect a change in carrier's strategy....
While the Federal Communications Commission touts anticipated public-safety and wireless benefits of its 700 MHz rulemaking decision, others are skeptical about whether the ruling will indeed produce a competitor to the Bell telephone-cable TV broadband duopoly or a strong commercial entity willing to partner...
The Federal Communications Commission approved 700 MHz auctions rules to foster the creation of a nationwide public safety-commercial broadband network and the introduction of new devices and applications in the wireless space.The agency voted to designate for auction a nationwide 10-megahertz spectrum block adjacent...
Dear Editor,After Hurricane Katrina devastated southern Mississippi in 2005, more than $110 billion in federal assistance poured into the region, spurring reconstruction. Yet most funds needed for this rebuilding-which remains ongoing-are coming from private sources.Gulf Coast reconstruction efforts underscore the critical role that public-private...
Verizon Wireless announced a $2.67 billion deal to acquire Rural Cellular Corp., one of the nation's largest rural carriers. The agreement will add RCC's 700,000 customers to Verizon Wireless' base-which currently stands at 62.1 million-and will expand the No. 2 operator's coverage in parts...
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...
As momentum grows behind Federal Communications Commission Chairman Kevin Martin's proposed open-access plan for the 700 MHz spectrum auction, Verizon Wireless reiterated its opposition to open access while at the same time working to influence the details of a potential ruling.Stipulations wanted According to...
Verizon Wireless eased its stance on FCC Chairman Kevin Martin's proposed rules for the 700 MHz spectrum auction, agreeing to stipulations that would require spectrum winners to allow any device onto their networks. According to the Wall Street Journal, Verizon Wireless CEO Lowell McAdam...
FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION CHAIRMAN KEVIN MARTIN could face trouble securing support from the agency's two Democrats for a key component of his 700 MHz plan, but the draft rule could entice Verizon Wireless to become more serious about a possible partnership with public safety.I'm...
CONCEPTUALLY, AT LEAST, FEW THINGS could be more appealing to mobile consumers than open wireless access.Richard Whitt, Google Inc.'s telecom and media counsel, painted a picture of a veritable mobile utopia on the company's blog last week as Google and its allies lobbied the...
Federal Communications Commission Chairman Kevin Martin's 700 MHz plan may face trouble securing support from the agency's two Democrats, but the draft rule could entice Verizon Wireless to become more serious about partnering with public safety."I'm a big believer in open access," said Michael...
The public-safety community appears to be gathering behind the 700 MHz plan floated by Federal Communications Commission Chairman Kevin Martin, a stark contrast to the volatile reaction to his attempt to impose an open-access-like condition to a third of the 60 megahertz to be...
Federal Communications Commission Chairman Kevin Martin's 700 MHz plan has triggered an angry backlash, with the agency chief suddenly finding himself squeezed by the cellular industry and others vehemently opposed to open access and those asserting the draft rule does not go nearly far...
The mobile-phone industry reacted angrily to Federal Communications Commission Chairman Kevin Martin's 700 MHz draft decision to impose an open-access-like condition on more than a third of the 60 megahertz to be auctioned, asserting such a regulation amounts to Silicon Valley welfare."Crafting special rules...
Major wireless policy debates are increasingly ceasing to be Inside-the-Beltway brawls limited to high-powered lobbyists hired by well-heeled, warring industry factions. Instead, proponents of ambitiously controversial proposals-particularly those promising to extend the reach of a free and open Internet-have been able to tap into...
WHILE FRONTLINE WIRELESS L.L.C., Congress and the mobile-phone industry sound off in the final throes of a testy, high-profile 700 MHz debate, the steady, low-key diplomacy of the public-safety community could prove decisive in determining whether the Federal Communications Commission approves for auction a...
More than a dozen House Commerce Committee lawmakers urged Federal Communications Commission Chairman Kevin Martin to reject Frontline Wireless L.L.C.'s push to have the agency create a national 700 MHz commercial-public safety broadband license with an open-access component."We believe that it is worth considering...
The 700 MHz debate has suddenly turned both interesting and nasty in the lead-up to next month's expected ruling by the Federal Communications Commission on auction rules.An AT&T Inc. official disclosed the top mobile-phone operator is mulling a play for a national commercial-public safety...
CHICAGO-Telecommunications will be the disruptive force of the 21st century, with the potential to bring radical changes to areas such as education, medicine and the creative arts, Verizon Communications Inc. Chairman and CEO Ivan Seidenberg told NXTcomm attendees during his keynote address.Echoing those thoughts,...
