Dish reluctantly extends its 600 MHz spectrum loan to T-Mobile

The days of Dish and T-Mobile playing nice may be coming to an end. On March 13, during the height of the coronavirus crisis, Dish lent its portfolio of 600 MHz spectrum to T-Mobile at no cost for 60 days in order to bolster wireless capacity during the pandemic. Recently, T-Mobile asked Dish for an extension of its 600 MHz spectrum loan until June 30. T-Mobile says the continued use of Dish’s spectrum is necessary to support the needs of customers who are still working and learning from home. It says usage of smartphones for hotspot tethering is up 57% on T-Mobile’s network, often for laptop and tablets used for schooling at home. Dish responded with a letter to the Federal Communications Commission, saying it was unwilling to grant T-Mobile’s request for continued free use of its 600 MHz licenses until June 30. Dish cited a number of reasons for refusing the request. It said granting the extension could interfere with the Department of Justice’s evaluation of a commercial lease between the parties related to the terms of the Sprint/T-Mobile merger. Dish said the parties have not yet stuck a commercial lease agreement deal for Dish’s 600 MHz licenses.