The Wireless Communications Association asked the FCC to schedule...

the public, particularly in the rural and underserved areas where many of these licenses are concentrated,” WCA said. “Moreover, new empirical evidence establishes that prompt re-auctioning these licenses will facilitate rapid transition of the 2.5 GHz band to the new bandplan adopted by the Commission in 2004 and promote the earliest possible deployment of wireless broadband services to Americans who reside within these BTAs.” The FCC sold licenses covering 493 basic trading areas (BTAs) in Auction No. 6, which closed in March of 1996. Authorizations were issued for all, but lost by 77 licensees who failed to pay. The FCC previously decided to delay the reauction until the completion of the BRS transition, or as late as April 2011. “WCA appreciates the benefit of providing auction participants with reasonable certainty as to what spectrum is available,” the group said. “However, that certainty would be provided by re-auctioning the 77 BRS BTA authorizations now. Reasonable auction participants will understand that, to the extent a BTA is not already undergoing transition at the time of the auction, the winning BRS BTA auction winner may have to act as the transition proponent pursuant to… the Commission’s rules to avoid losing its newly won license at the conclusion of the transition process.”