FCC Wireless Auction Nears End

FCC WIRELESS AUCTION NEARS END
[SOURCE: Reuters, AUTHOR: Jeremy Pelofsky]
The Federal Communications Commission auction of airwaves for advanced wireless services was winding down on Thursday with few new bids offered and spectrum-hungry T-Mobile USA in the lead. T-Mobile, the No. 4 U.S. wireless carrier and owned by Deutsche Telekom, has provisionally won 119 licenses in major markets like New York City and Chicago with offers of almost $4.2 billion after 136 rounds. So far the auction has grossed almost $13.9 billion, but would net about $13.7 billion because of discounts offered to entrepreneurial bidders. Analysts had expected the sale to raise from $8 billion to $15 billion.
http://today.reuters.com/news/articleinvesting.aspx?view=CN&storyID=2006-09-14T164604Z_01_N14259434_RTRIDST_0_TELECOMS-WIRELESS-AUCTION.XML&rpc=...

* Wireless carriers snap up federal airwave licenses
http://www.usatoday.com/printedition/money/20060915/2b_spectrum15.art.htm