Justice Department Backs Limits on Wireless Companies

William J. Baer, the Justice Department’s top antitrust enforcer said that he supported limits on how much of the nation’s airwaves a single wireless company could hold, a condition that could keep AT&T and Verizon from bidding on certain blocks of airwaves during auctions.

Baer, the assistant attorney general who oversees the antitrust division, told a Senate subcommittee that limits were needed to promote competition in the market for wireless broadband service. The remarks echoed comments filed by the Justice Department last week in response to a Federal Communications Commission request for recommendations on how public airwaves, or spectrum, should be allocated. The FCC sought the comments in preparation for the auction, in 2014, of spectrum that it is hoping to reclaim from television broadcasters. Sen Richard Blumenthal (D-CTT) asked Baer during the hearing if he thought the FCC should put a spectrum screen into effect for the auction. “The answer is yes, Senator,” Baer said. “We believe that well-defined, competition-focused rules for putting newly available spectrum to use quickly and efficiently is the best way of promoting consumer welfare.” Senator Mike Lee (R-UT) said he believed that an FCC screen could result in the government subsidizing smaller wireless companies. But Baer replied that the playing field might already be tilted by larger companies buying spectrum simply to keep it out of the hands of competitors.