The Federal Communications Commission made few friends today in determining the rules for next year's wireless spectrum auction. The agency said it would adopt a middle-ground approach, allowing open applications and downloads, while rejecting parts of a proposal by Google to mandate open services and open networks.
Earlier this month, Google had sent an open letter to the FCC, saying that it would "commit to a minimum of $4.6 billion" on the upcoming spectrum auction if the agency would require that the winning bidder operate the spectrum on a wholesale basis.
Had Google been able to get the FCC to adopt its four-point plan, many believe the search giant would have used the opening to enter the wireless business. However, prior the FCC's decision, Chris Sacca, head of special initiatives at Google, called the 700MHz range of mobile spectrum a key tool in bringing internet to those who so far have been left out of the digital age.
"Mobile is the fastest and cheapest way to reach the largest number of people," Sacca said. "There are billions of people on this planet who still don't have access to the internet. And we think mobile presents the biggest opportunity to get them on the internet."
Regardless of the stated use, the spectrum, which will become available in 2009 when TV broadcasters make the congressionally-mandated switch from analog to digital, represents hot property for established carriers and would-be wireless providers alike.
For now, Google and the consumer advocacy groups that had pushed for the changes are calling today's ruling a partial step forward.
"The FCC made real, if incomplete, progress for consumers this afternoon," Google said in a carefully worded statement that praised the decision to allow consumers to download and use any software and content applications. Google also applauded the FCC’s decision to adopt an open device policy that lets people use the wireless device of their choice on any network. But the company stopped short of calling the ruling a win for consumers.
Google said the FCC could have done more to increase competition, with today's ruling failing to open up the so-called "third pipe" for broadband access.
"It would [been] have a more complete victory for consumers had the FCC adopted all four of the license conditions that we advocated, in order to pave the way for the real 'third pipe' broadband competition that FCC Chairman Kevin Martin has been touting," Google said.
Glenn Fleishman, who blogs about the wireless industry for Wi-Fi New News, said that the failure to require the winning bidder to sell access on a wholesale basis effectively keeps the spectrum under lock and key, adding that today's decision perpetuates "business as usual" at the FCC.
In a statement, Martin said the FCC was committed to "ensuring that the fruits of wireless innovation swiftly pass into the hands of consumers," even if the ruling did not specifically favor one company over another.
For now, wireless carriers such as Verizon and AT&T, which labeled Google's bid "corporate welfare," have protected their turf, blocking the search giant from entering full-force into what has been a heavily-regulated and closed-off mobile market.
"As we've previously noted, if Google is serious about introducing a competing business model into the wireless industry, Chairman Martin's compromise plan allows them to bid in the auction, win the spectrum and then implement every one of the conditions they seek," Jim Cicconi, AT&T's senior executive vice president, said in a statement.
John Dunbar of Wireless Tech said the FCC's decision not to mandate wholesale operation of the spectrum makes Google less likely to bid.
Google has said it will need a few weeks to digest the finer points of the ruling. The company did not say if it plans to bid on the spectrum, which the FCC will auction sometime next year.
Michael Estrin is associate editor at iMediaConnection. Read full bio.
