The FCC asked for comment on Cincinnati Bell’s proposed sale of its spectrum licenses in a complex deal involving Grain and Verizon. The transaction covers six AWS-1 licenses, two personal communications service (PCS) licenses and a single 700 MHz A-block license. The licenses would be sold to Grain, which would then transfer or lease the spectrum to Verizon. Grain in turn would pick up an AWS-1 license from Verizon. “According to the Applicants, these proposed license assignments and long-term spectrum leasing arrangements follow the decision by Cincinnati Bell Wireless to exit the wireless marketplace,” the FCC said in a Wednesday public notice (http://bit.ly/1mZtJVJ). “According to the Applicants, the proposed transaction would allow Verizon Wireless to obtain additional spectrum capacity to meet growing customer demand for wireless broadband services and allow for contiguous spectrum both in larger blocks and more aligned with spectrum it holds in adjacent markets.” Last month, Cincinnati Bell unveiled plans to sell off its spectrum licenses as it exits the wireless business for $210 million (http://bit.ly/1lRqMDL). Petitions to deny are due June 20, oppositions June 30 and replies July 8, under the pleading cycle established.

AT&T has done some 60 spectrum deals in recent years and is in good shape headed into the AWS-3 and TV incentive auctions, Chief Financial Officer John Stephens said Wednesday at a J.P. Morgan financial conference. But he also sounded bullish on AT&T participation in both major auctions (CD May 16 p5). “We certainly look forward to participating not only in the AWS-3 but in the broadcast spectrum [auction],” Stephens said. “The really critical observation for us is that we believe that auctions will be competitive and we believe the strong balance sheet, particularly in our industry … is going to be real competitive advantage in that bidding process.”

SureCall said the FCC certified two of the company’s most popular industrial in-building cell signal boosters as meeting the agency’s new standards. The devices are the Force5 Industrial and the DualForce Industrial boosters. Each covers up to 80,000 square feet of space.

Verizon said the FCC shouldn’t now move forward on rules that would allow voice calls on commercial flights. “There are interference concerns that merit further study before any system permitting the operation of mobile devices during flight, known as an ‘Airborne Access System,’ is allowed to operate in U.S. airspace,” Verizon said (http://bit.ly/1k322e5). Replies to the commission’s “Expanding Access to Mobile Wireless Services Onboard Aircraft” rulemaking were due May 16 and posted by the agency Tuesday in docket 13-301.

The FCC cited Panasystem for allegedly importing and marketing counterfeit smartphones marked with unauthorized or invalid labels falsely indicating they were certified by the agency. The Enforcement Bureau ordered the online electronics retailer to immediately stop importing and marketing the uncertified devices or face monetary penalties, said an agency news release Tuesday (http://fcc.us/1k2C22g). It said an investigation identified the smartphones imported by Panasystem as counterfeit Samsung “Galaxy S Duos” and “Galaxy Ace.” Although the devices were labeled with seemingly valid Samsung FCC identifiers, the investigation allegedly showed Samsung neither manufactured the devices nor authorized the FCC identifier labels. The investigation allegedly found Panasystem imported counterfeit BlackBerry model 9790 devices labeled with invalid FCC identifiers, which rendered them illegal for sale in the U.S. By law, smartphones must be certified in accordance with FCC technical standards before they can be marketed in the U.S. Certified smartphones are labeled with a unique FCC identifier that can’t be placed on devices without commission authorization. Panasystem must “take immediate steps to come into compliance and discontinue the importation and marketing of uncertified radio frequency devices,” said a bureau citation (http://fcc.us/1obuuKO). It said if Panasystem continues to import and market uncertified devices, it may be subject to penalties of up to $16,000 for each model per day for each violation, up to $122,500 for any single act or failure to act, and eventually seizures and criminal charges. The company declined to comment.

A U.S. District Court judge in Chicago rejected claims that the four national wireless carriers, aided by CTIA, conspired to fix the price of pay-per-use (PPU) text messages -- the rate subscribers without a bundled plan pay for individual texts. Judge Matthew Kennelly tossed out a class-action lawsuit brought against AT&T, Sprint, T-Mobile and Verizon. “Plaintiffs allege a conspiracy in which T-Mobile, Sprint, AT&T, and Verizon agreed to coordinate their PPU … pricing -- first at ten cents, then at fifteen, and finally at twenty -- from 2005 to 2008,” Kennelly wrote. “Plaintiffs allege that high-level officers of the carriers devised the increases in concert, using CTIA meetings as a venue for their discussions, and concocted sham internal analyses to justify the pricing moves. Plaintiffs also present economic evidence to the effect that the structure of the wireless industry, and the carriers’ position in it, provided an incentive for the carriers to collude.” After reviewing the evidence, Kennelly rejected the arguments and granted the carriers summary judgment.

The FCC took a “significant step in freeing up additional spectrum to meet Americans’ unquenchable thirst for mobile broadband service” in approving rules Thursday (CD May 15 p4) for a TV incentive auction, said CTIA Vice President Regulatory Affairs Scott Bergmann on the group’s blog. “The airwaves made available through this auction will fuel infrastructure investment, spur job creation and foster the virtuous cycle of competition and innovation -- benefiting wireless users throughout the country,” Bergmann wrote Monday (http://bit.ly/1vsYupW). “Consumers will experience better, faster and more ubiquitous wireless broadband service.” The auction will help address the expected spectrum crunch, he said: “The latest projections are staggering and demonstrate mobile data’s continued explosive growth -- 360 petabytes per month, equal to 90 million DVDs per month or 992 million text messages per second.”

The FCC gave railroads some of the certainty they've been seeking as they implement Positive Train Control. The Wireless Bureau Monday released a document by the Advisory Council on Historic Preservation, which will govern National Historic Preservation Act review of many PTC facilities. “By tailoring and expediting the historic preservation review process under Section 106 for PTC wayside poles and infrastructure in the railroad right-of way, the Program Comment will facilitate timely completion of the important PTC railway safety initiative, as mandated by Congress, while ensuring that the effects of wayside poles and infrastructure on historic properties are appropriately considered,” the bureau said (http://bit.ly/1vuz0bF). It invited questions, with a due date of May 28. PTC is designed to protect trains from collisions with other trains, over-speed derailments and other threats to rail safety.

Sprint agreed to pay $7.5 million, a record fine, to end an FCC investigation over whether the company violated the agency’s do-not-call rules, the FCC said Monday. The carrier agreed to a two-year plan to ensure compliance with commission requirements protecting consumer privacy (http://fcc.us/Tmxs52). “We expect companies to respect the privacy of consumers who have opted out of marketing calls,” said Travis LeBlanc, Enforcement Bureau acting chief. “Today’s settlement leaves no question that protecting consumer privacy is a top enforcement priority.” “This consent decree relates to issues resulting from technical and inadvertent human errors, which Sprint reported to the FCC,” a Sprint spokeswoman said in an e-mail. “We have conducted a thorough, top-to-bottom evaluation of our Do Not Call data management systems, and significant capital investments have been made to improve our Do Not Call/SMS Message architecture, oversight and compliance."

The FCC’s spectrum aggregation order, approved Thursday, is highly positive for AT&T, Dish Network and Verizon, Guggenheim Partners analyst Paul Gallant said Friday in a research note. “Right at the end of the proceeding, Verizon’s and AT&T’s spectrum buying opportunity went from good to very good,” Gallant said. That makes a buy of Dish more plausible, he said. “Raising the spectrum screen from 151 MHz to around 190-200 MHz should greatly reduce one major objection to a merger: that AT&T or Verizon would have too much spectrum if they acquired Dish,” Gallant wrote. “For example, Verizon currently has an average of 102 MHz per market. Adding Dish’s 56 MHz would have put Verizon well over the old 151 MHz cap in some markets but would put Verizon well under the new screen of 190-200 MHz. Being below cap increases the deal approval prospects but does not guarantee it -- FCC will still examine competitive effects of all spectrum deals.” The rules are “less helpful” to T-Mobile and Sprint but probably raise the likelihood of a successful incentive auction, the note said. The rules mean Verizon and AT&T “will be able to secure meaningful low-band spectrum” in the incentive auction, UBS said Friday. “We remain neutral on wireless amid rising competition, with [T-Mobile] our only Buy in the segment due to strong sub momentum, conservative valuation, and potential as a takeout target,” UBS said. The spectrum aggregation rules make an AT&T or Verizon buy of Dish more likely, but a Sprint/T-Mobile merger more difficult, said New Street Research in a Friday note. “Sprint is at or above the screen in most markets,” the form said. “As such, a transaction with [T-Mobile] would trigger enhanced scrutiny and significant spectrum divestitures would likely be required.” The incentive auction order “represents a significant step toward implementing a ‘win-win’ for consumers and the U.S. economy,” said CTIA President Steve Largent. “This historic effort has the potential to unleash vital spectrum to meet ever-increasing consumer demand for mobile broadband services, spur investment and innovation and maintain our global leadership in mobile broadband. As a result of the Commission’s and Congress’ hard work, American consumers and businesses will benefit from a new generation of wireless services and offerings built on the foundation of new mobile broadband spectrum.”