save our spectrum

Rural Carriers Were Big Losers in 700MHz Auction

Stevie Converse — Tue, 08 Apr 2008 06:35:13 -0700

If anyone lost in the recent 700MHz spectrum auction, it was rural carriers. The FCC set reserve prices too high for small companies to afford individually and its anticollusion rules kept them from banding together to buy airwaves as a group.

Wireless Auction Unlikely to Shift Carrier Balance

Stevie Converse — Tue, 08 Apr 2008 05:55:01 -0700

Both Verizon Wireless and AT&T won enough spectrum licenses in the U.S. government's 700MHz auction concluded last month to roll out services a cut above what they offer today, though how fast they are for subscribers will be up to the carriers.

Vacant Airwaves Spur TV-Tech Turf Battle

Stevie Converse — Tue, 08 Apr 2008 05:41:13 -0700

Ten months before the nation flips to digital television, technology companies and TV broadcasters are fighting over the virtual remote, with different ideas of what to do with the unused airwaves.

Verizon's Spectrum Plans: Speedier Wireless Broadband

Stevie Converse — Fri, 04 Apr 2008 08:52:23 -0700

Verizon executives on Friday said that a valuable chunk of newly purchased analog TV spectrum is a "transformative opportunity" that will let the company offer vastly faster wireless broadband service within the next three years.

AT&T’s 700 MHz Strategy: LTE

Stevie Converse — Fri, 04 Apr 2008 08:17:38 -0700

The open access restrictions mandated by the Federal Communications Commission on portions of the recently auctioned 700 MHz spectrum were among the main reasons AT&T chose not to bid for that spectrum but opted instead to pay more for that of the B-Block, which complements the slice they bought from Aloha Partners, according to AT&T Wireless President and CEO Ralph de la Vega.

FCC Stumbles over Skype Petition

Stevie Converse — Fri, 04 Apr 2008 08:04:25 -0700

I couldn’t say for certain, but I’d be willing to take a good guess that there are cordless phones somewhere in the homes of FCC Chairman Kevin Martin and Commissioners Robert McDowell and Deborah Tate. The next time one of the commissioners picks up that phone, he or she should give some thought to how it came to be there.

Indie Canadian ISPs Fight Back

Stevie Converse — Fri, 04 Apr 2008 07:36:06 -0700

Canadian law professor Michael Geist says that The Canadian Association of Internet Providers, Canada's largest ISP association, has filed a Part VII application with the CRTC asking it to demand Bell Canada ceases and desists the throttling of wholesale partners.

700 MHz Auction: No Lease Demanded, Public Safety Group Says

Stevie Converse — Fri, 04 Apr 2008 06:27:06 -0700

The company advising a public safety group on the recently concluded 700MHz spectrum auction at the U.S. Federal Communications Commission has denied that it demanded lease payments from potential winning bidders for a piece of that spectrum.

An Auction that Google Was Content to Lose

Stevie Converse — Fri, 04 Apr 2008 06:22:05 -0700

Google had little desire to own a premium slice of the nation’s airwaves, but a week into a federal auction for wireless licenses, it found itself at risk of being the winning bidder for the coveted spectrum.

AT&T Executive Says Carriers Put Premium on Unencumbered Spectrum

Stevie Converse — Fri, 04 Apr 2008 05:51:44 -0700

The head of AT&T Inc.'s wireless unit said Thursday the results of the recently ended U.S. wireless spectrum auction showed that carriers "put a premium on spectrum that was not encumbered by excessive regulation."

Cone of Silence (Finally) Lifts on the Spectrum Auction

Stevie Converse — Fri, 04 Apr 2008 05:45:53 -0700

For three weeks at the end of January and early February, a small team of us holed up in double super secret "war rooms" in Mountain View, CA and Washington, D.C. to bid on Google's behalf in the FCC spectrum auction.

House Oversight Hearing on 700 MHz Auction Scheduled for April 15

Stevie Converse — Fri, 04 Apr 2008 05:14:13 -0700

The House Commerce Committee will be holding an oversight hearing on the FCC and the 700 MHz auction. The hearing will be held at 9:30 a.m. in the Rayburn House Office Building, room 2322.

Execs Speak Out on Regulations at U.S. Wireless Show

Stevie Converse — Fri, 04 Apr 2008 05:06:26 -0700

Telecommunications executives railed against the prospect of increased regulation of the U.S. wireless industry at a conference this week, complaining about everything from network access rules to taxes that they say could stunt growth.

And Now for D Block

Stevie Converse — Thu, 03 Apr 2008 08:18:15 -0700

It's apparent to anyone who has been following the 700 MHz auction that the plan to allocate spectrum for a nationwide public safety network which would allow a private company to deploy the infrastructure and sell access to the network to private users, who could be preempted by public safety users in an emergency, isn't going to happen.

Third Time Lucky? Google Seeks Open Access in White Spaces

Stevie Converse — Thu, 03 Apr 2008 07:31:13 -0700

The results of the U.S. 700 MHz auction were far from fulfilling Google's dreams of an open wireless network that would significantly boost unfettered internet usage across the airwaves, and so its own revenues.

Clash over White Spaces

Stevie Converse — Thu, 03 Apr 2008 06:57:49 -0700

The big guns of high tech and consumer advocacy are launching a major lobbying blitz next week to convince policymakers to allow unlicensed electronic gadgets to operate on the television spectrum.

Chatting with Verizon Wireless's Lowell McAdam

Stevie Converse — Thu, 03 Apr 2008 04:53:04 -0700

I sat down this morning with Verizon Wireless Chief Executive Lowell McAdam to talk about the company's recent $9.5 billion purchase of radio spectrum, it moves to open its existing networks, and the hottest applications for cell phone users today.

If Granny Were Real, She'd Like the Idea of 'Wi-Fi on Steroids'

Stevie Converse — Wed, 02 Apr 2008 07:33:38 -0700

Granny is a lovable gray-haired lady in a pink sweater who likes nothing better than to sit quietly at home watching her favorite TV shows. It's one of her few remaining joys in life. Why, then, are those billionaire moguls in the high-tech industry trying to take it away?

FCC Chairman to Oppose Skype Open-Network Petition

Stevie Converse — Wed, 02 Apr 2008 04:23:38 -0700

Federal Communications Commission Chairman Kevin Martin said on Tuesday he was proposing to dismiss a petition from Web-based phone service Skype to force open wireless networks.

A Fatal Exception Has Occured in Your White Spaces Sensing Device

Stevie Converse — Tue, 01 Apr 2008 07:50:19 -0700

It would be funny were it not so easy for NAB to exploit. The Microsoft prototype shut itself down last week and would not restart.