700 MHz Auction Update
So 214 bidders have been approved for the forthcoming 700 MHz spectrum auction, which starts on Jan. 24. The big bidders include AT&T, Verizon and Google. These bidders will go after 1,200 licenses. — The bidding will conclude on March 24; down payments will be due by April 11.
Context & Ripple Effects
The auction's field is now locked in: the FCC has approved Google alongside AT&T and Verizon, confirming what had been building since November, when Google declared it would bid on the 700 MHz licenses. The roster of 214 approved bidders competing for 1,200 licenses was first surfaced in December via the FCC's bidder disclosure.
The carrier-vs-internet-company dynamic was far from certain a few months ago — as late as October 2007, AT&T was publicly unsure whether it would bid at all. That both incumbents and Google cleared approval sets up a rare contest between telecom incumbents and a web company over the same airwaves when bidding opens January 24.
First-order effects
- AT&T and Verizon face direct competition for 700 MHz licenses from Google and 211 other approved bidders starting January 24, with bidding running through March 24.
- All 214 bidders must post down payments by April 11 to hold any licenses they win.
Second-order effects
- A deep field of 214 bidders across 1,200 licenses puts upward pressure on spectrum prices, raising acquisition costs for whichever carriers expand their holdings.
- Smaller telecoms in the pool now have to weigh capital exposure against well-funded rivals like Google, whose entry signals it may build or broker wireless services rather than simply resell capacity.
Third-order effects
- If a web company wins meaningful spectrum, the traditional boundary between network operators and internet service providers starts to dissolve, forcing regulators to treat internet firms as infrastructure players.
- An auction this contested becomes a template for how future spectrum releases are structured — and for whether open participation by non-carriers gets encouraged or constrained.
The trend: Wireless spectrum is becoming a battleground where internet companies compete directly with carriers for infrastructure control, not just ride on their networks.