The FCC has officially and unanimously rejected Dish Network’s $3.3 billion in AWS-3 spectrum auction discounts.
Dish used three smaller companies, in which it owned an 85% stake each, to place bids on its behalf. The smaller companies, known as designated entities, qualified as small businesses and received a significant discount on their $13.1 billion auction tally.
Dish competitors AT&T and Verizon Wireless cried foul over Dish’s bidding techniques. Dish maintains that it adhered to the auction rules and expressed disappointment over the FCC’s decision. Dish owns significant swaths of spectrum, but has yet to deploy any sort of wireless network.
Last month, the FCC voted in new rules that prevent such discounts in the future.
