T-Mobile USA, the Rural Cellular Association (RCA) and other groups have formed an alliance to oppose Verizon’s plan to buy US$3.9bn of AWS spectrum from four cablecos. The FCC is in the process of investigating the acquisitions, which have faced…
T-Mobile USA, the Rural Cellular Association (RCA) and other groups have formed an alliance to oppose Verizon’s plan to buy US$3.9bn of AWS spectrum from four cablecos.
The FCC is in the process of investigating the acquisitions, which have faced fierce opposition from rivals that claim it will hinder competition.
In a statement, the newly-formed Alliance for Broadband Competition said Verizon’s proposed deals would “forever change the competitive landscape of the broadband services marketplace and radically reduce consumer choice in the process”. It claims the purchase would give Verizon control over at least one third of all comparable spectrum in the US.
The RCA had already outlined its opposition to the deal in a filing with the FCC last week, where it pointedly withdrew a petition it filed in 2008 regarding device exclusivity.
The RCA argued that if Verizon and AT&T are allowed to continue acquiring AWS spectrum, device exclusivity is less relevant as manufacturers would simply build sought-after handsets to work on the spectrum owned by the large networks and not the lower 700MHz band used by smaller carriers. They argue spectrum fragmentation will create issues of device interoperability.
Verizon has put a portion of lower 700MHz band up for sale in an attempt to ingratiate itself to the regulator. The sale of this spectrum is contingent on its AWS spectrum acquisitions being approved.
When Verizon first announced the deals at the end of last year, it was not anticipated that they would face regulatory difficulty.
However, following the FCC’s block of AT&T’s merger with T-Mobile USA, the regulator has faced increasing claims that Verizon and AT&T are too powerful.
Beyond the spectrum purchase, the Alliance is also arguing that the reseller, agency and joint-venture agreements Verizon has made with the cablecos will have wider competition implications for broadband access.
