EchoStar and DirecTV are barred from purchasing a DBS license or ...
EchoStar and DirecTV are barred from purchasing a DBS license or leasing spectrum for the only 2 remaining unassigned channels in the 12-GHz band that can provide service to the eastern portion of the country, the FCC said Dec.…
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3. The FCC Wireless Bureau is now able to schedule an auction for the license, under the order. The eligibility restrictions being imposed on channels 23 and 24, located at 61.5 degrees W, are effective immediately and end 4 years after the award of the initial license, the FCC said. The recently auctioned DBS channels at 157 degrees, 166 degrees and 175 degrees W are located so far west of the continental U.S. that they're unable to serve certain eastern parts of the country. In a previous filing, Rainbow DBS had contended that the Commission should prohibit EchoStar and DirecTV from eligibility for the 2 channels because, given the market power they possess, the operators have a strong incentive to acquire the channels to foreclose rivals. Rainbow DBS and EchoStar are each licensees of 11 channels at 61.5 degrees W. EchoStar had said eligibility restrictions were “unnecessary and probably unlawful” and the restrictions that Rainbow DBS was pushing would make it the only qualified applicant. Rainbow DBS has been leasing the 2 channels temporarily since Oct. 2003. EchoStar said they were disappointed with the decision and added that the transponders could have been helpful in their transition to one dish for local-to-local service, which has been mandated by recent legislation. Rainbow DBS and DirecTV declined to comment on the order.