FCC Auctions off $15 Billion In Air

Smell that? It's the rich aroma of cell phone air.

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Dateline: 12/26/00

By the end of the day last Friday, the U.S. government had received bids totaling $11.1 billion in an auction. Good grief! What's up for bid? It's not the original copy of the Constitution. Not George Washington's wig, nor Lincoln's first split rail. Instead, it is -- air.

In its best-ever air auction, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is selling off, to 58 deep-pocketed bidders, valuable parts of the radio wave spectrum that will allow cellular phones, pagers and similar devices to do far more than beep, buzz and butcher Bach badly in theaters, restaurants, churches and funeral homes in the all-to-near future.

The 58 wireless communication firms are been bidding for a total of 422 licenses that will help them improve and enhance services in large markets including New York City, Chicago, Boston and Washington, D.C. 

Over the next two years, wireless communications providers hope to add Internet-based features like interactive games, online investing and news to cellular phones.

After 23 rounds of bidding, the $5.5 billion offered by Verizon Wireless led all bidders, followed by a $2 billion bid from Alaska Native Wireless, a subsidiary of AT&T Wireless.

The highest bids offered for single licenses so far are Verizon's $968.6 million bid for the New York City license and $212 million for the Boston license.

The air-auction has been suspended for the holidays, but once bidding resumes on Jan. 5, FCC analysts expect total bids to reach $15 - $20 billion by the time bidding closes on Jan. 20.

The auction is officially known as the C and F Block Broadband PCS License Auction. Complete information and current bids can be found on the FCC's Auctions In Progress Web page:
http://www.fcc.gov/wtb/auctions/c_f_blk1.html

• FCC Warns of Auction Scams
"The Federal Communications Commission (FCC), which grants licenses for radio frequencies to private and commercial parties in the United States, uses auctions to select among competing applications for certain licenses. Although auctions are a fair and efficient way to grant licenses, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has found that some individuals (not affiliated with the FCC) are using shams to promote fraudulent investments in FCC licenses subject to auction." -- Federal Communications Commission

 

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