Deadlines, Rules Announced for 700 MHz "Open Access" Auction

Theresa Cavanaugh and Chris Fedeli at Davis Wright Tremaine summarize today the Federal Communications Commission's recently announced dates and procedures for Auction 73, the highly publicized wireless spectrum auction that will impose limited open access requirements on successful bidders in some of the spectrum available. The application filing deadline is Dec. 3, 2007. The auction itself will begin Jan. 24, 2008.

In a related item, Wall Street Journal columnist Walt Mossberg blisters the federal government today for leaving the cell phone industry in a position to control the content that traverses their networks as well as the devices that connect to it.

A shortsighted and often just plain stupid federal government has allowed itself to be bullied and fooled by a handful of big wireless phone operators for decades now. And the result has been a mobile phone system that is the direct opposite of the PC model. It severely limits consumer choice, stifles innovation, crushes entrepreneurship, and has made the U.S. the laughingstock of the mobile-technology world, just as the cellphone is morphing into a powerful hand-held computer.

Bullied and fooled? Considering the influence that net neutrality's foes have traditionally wielded in Washington (AT&T alone gave over $38 million to federal office seekers during 1990-2006; Verizon gave $15.5 million during the same period), it's something of a miracle that any open access requirements were imposed at all. If baseball was played like telecom policymaking, the umpire would consult with the pitcher, and the pitcher's attorneys, before calling every ball or strike. What the FCC did in the 700 MHz auction was brave, not cowardly, given the way business usually gets done here.