FCC stalls 700 MHz spectrum auction again

The FCC has repeated itself by delaying the 700 MHz spectrum auction. The Commission currently has not released a new date because it is awaiting resolution of several petitions that seek reconsideration of clearing the spectrum.

The FCC claims it needs more time because it still is reconsidering petitions filed by The Association for Maximum Service Television, Spectrum Clearing Alliance, a joint filing of broadcasters and other entities interested in band clearing policies, and the Spectrum Exchange Group, said a spokeswoman for the FCC.

The wireless industry does not seem to be distressed by the delay. Tom Wheeler, president and CEO of the Cellular Telecommunications & Internet Association, issued a statement that the decision is good for the wireless industry, the U.S. Treasury and wireless consumers.

Wheeler also found the decision favorable because “no one can predict how or when this spectrum will be available or how it will fit into a national, long-term spectrum policy.”

This is not the first time the FCC has instituted an auction delay. In January the FCC postponed the auction from March 6 to September 12 based on its decision that bidders needed more time to plan due to the length of the C- and F-block PCS spectrum auctions that had just concluded.

More time may not be a problem, because the spectrum in the 700 MHz range is utilized by roughly 150 broadcasters, all of whom have until 2006--or until 85% of homes can receive digital signals, which some FCC officials have said will take 25 years--to relinquish their rights to this spectrum.