Investment firms including TMT-focused Columbia Capital are reportedly looking at taking part in the Federal Communications Commission’s (FCC’s) upcoming 600 MHz broadcast incentive auction. This could lead to a bidding war with wireless carriers, cable companies and potentially also spectrum-hungry tech firms.
Investment firms including TMT-focused Columbia Capital are reportedly looking at taking part in the Federal Communications Commission’s (FCC’s) upcoming 600 MHz broadcast incentive auction.
Columbia, a venture capital firm based in Alexandria, intends to bid for the highly-coveted spectrum in the auction, set to begin in late March, The Washington Post cited a person with knowledge of the matter saying.
“A number” of investment firms have been analysing the value of the airwaves in recent months, trying to decide whether they should participate and, if so, how much they should spend, the report stated.
If they go ahead, they could find themselves in a bidding war with mobile operators and perhaps some companies in the technology sector.
Columbia Capital, which says it has some US$30m of funds under management, has been active in the mobile space since the late 1980s, with exited investments including Extenet Systems, MetroPCS and Mobile Satellite Ventures (MSV). It also claims to have two decades of experience in spectrum acquisitions, including investments in 17 frequency bands internationally.
Three of the country’s big four mobile players – Verizon (NYSE:VZ), AT&T (NYSE:T) and T-Mobile US (NASDAQ:TMUS) – are expected to take part in the auction, however loss-making Sprint (NYSE:S) has said it will abstain. Cable giant Comcast (NASDAQ:CMCSA) has also said it will participate, signalling a further push into wireless services, while rival Charter Communications (NASDAQ:CHTR) has indicated it may get involved.
The reverse part of the auction, in which broadcasters will sell spectrum to the FCC, will be followed by a forward auction, which will see that spectrum resold.
In a recent blog post, AT&T’s vice president of regulatory affairs Joan Marsh commended the commission for having accomplished “perhaps more than many thought possible” in preparation for the ground-breaking auction. However, she expressed concerns that some issues remain unresolved.
“We are less than 60 days from the start of the auction and forward auction bidders still have had no direct access to the new and complicated software package that will control this auction,” she wrote. “Practice rounds with the software are essential and while the FCC has made clear bidders will get practice rounds, it appears that we won’t get them until after the auction opens and the initial band plan is released, which likely means not until May. That will give us little time to incorporate the learnings from the practice round before bidders are qualified and the official mock auction begins.”
That said, Marsh was keen to stress that AT&T will participate.
“Make no mistake – we are strapping on our climbing gear and readying our oxygen tanks. When the time comes to leave base camp, we will be ready to continue to climb. The question is what surprises the mountain will hold for us before the climb is concluded.”
