The Competitive Carrier’s Association has asked the FCC to drop a rule regarding when it will split bidding in the forthcoming 600MHz incentive auction into unreserved and reserved airwaves.
The CCA argues the trigger proposed by the FCC will have a negative impact on the auction. “The price-per-MHz-POP trigger serves no legitimate purpose. In fact, the price-per-MHz-POP trigger obliterates the benefits of the spectrum reserve, and will hinder the FCC’s goals of accelerating deployment of broadband services to all Americans, especially those in rural and hard to reach areas,” said CCA President Steve Berry.
The FCC wants to ensure that at least some spectrum is reserved for smaller carriers so it doesn’t all fall into the hands of the larger national operators. The CCA agrees with that viewpoint, but not with how the FCC has implemented the reserve. Berry further argued that dropping the trigger “would enable greater competition in the wireless marketplace and benefit consumers and the economy.”
The FCC is prepared to vote on the rules at its next open meeting, scheduled for Dec. 11. The auction itself won’t begin until early 2016.
