If the FCC imposes open access requirements on a block of 700 MHz...
If the FCC imposes open access requirements on a block of 700 MHz upper-band spectrum, rural and other small wireless operators may lose the chance to win spectrum in the lower band, according to a Monday letter signed by…
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139 operators and released by CTIA. According to rules proposed last week by FCC Chairman Kevin Martin, spectrum in the upper band is expected to be auctioned in regional economic areas, thought to be too big for most small and regional operators. In lower band, licenses are far smaller and so more attractive to smaller operators. “Although many smaller licenses may initially cost more, large carriers will likely choose to bid on the many smaller licenses rather than accept larger, encumbered licenses,” wrote the companies. The companies reject the compromise Martin seems to be proposing by auctioning the upper band large block with open access but keeping smaller licenses in the lower band. The proposal trades the “speculative gains” of “novel and untested” open access for “the benefits of rural deployment,” said the companies.