Google Pledges to Spend $4.6 Billion on FCC Auction

GOOGLE PLEDGES TO SPEND $4.6 BILLION ON FCC AUCTION
[SOURCE: Wall Street Journal, AUTHOR: Corey Boles corey.boles@dowjones.com & Kevin J. Delaney kevin.delaney@wsj.com]
Google said it is prepared to spend at least $4.6 billion for wireless licenses if the Federal Communications Commission adopts auction rules that allow open access for users and wireless resellers. The company said it would participate in the auction if the FCC requires whoever wins a large chunk of the spectrum -- roughly one-third of the total to be auctioned -- to let consumers use any compatible wireless devices and software and open the network to resellers and others service providers. Draft FCC rules for the auction include the requirement for openness to different devices and software and services, though Google remains concerned they're not enforceable or specific enough. In addition, Google wants the spectrum owner to operate it at least partly on a wholesale basis, requiring the owner to offer access to its wireless networks to other companies who want to sell wireless services -- a condition the draft rules now don't include. It remains unclear whether the conditions for Google's bid, which Google Chief Executive Eric Schmidt outlined in a letter to FCC Chairman Kevin Martin Friday, will be met. It is also unlikely that Google would build a wireless network on its own if it were to win the auction, but would make the spectrum available to others who would build and also potentially partner in building a network.
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB118494147432873053.html?mod=djemTECH
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