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Feb. 28, 2008

The FCC 700 Mhz spectrum auction has been going on for a little over a month now and Arkansas Senator Mark Pryor termed it a disaster yesterday at the National Association of Broadcasters' State Leadership Conference in Washington, D.C.

Pryor, a member of the influential Senate Commerce Committee, was critical of FCC Chairman Kevin Martin’s leadership of the auction, saying that the FCC allowed telecom powerhouses such as Verizon and AT&T to in effect control the auction.

Overall, bidding was pretty much held anonymously. No winners have yet been announced for any portion of the spectrum, although many observers are now speculating that Verizon Wireless won a majority of the largest, coveted C Block of the wireless spectrum.

Despite some criticism for its methods, the auction has raised nearly double its projected take, reaching nearly $20 billion as bids have now slowed to a small trickle in the past two weeks.

In a nutshell, Pryor reportedly told the broadcasters “in fact, history will show the Federal Communications Commission actually helped two big wireless companies to the detriment of competitors. They also allowed the biggest two to outbid smaller companies and effectively control the auction.”

It's still too early to know if there could be an investigation to enquire if in fact Pryor's allegations are real, but some say there's a chance if an official complaint from one of the competing companies is ever sent to Congress.

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Source: BCD News.

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