Controversy surrounds unsold spectrum block intended for public safety use

The company advising a public safety group on the recently concluded 700MHz spectrum auction at the Federal Communications Commission has denied that it demanded lease payments from potential winning bidders for a piece of that spectrum. Instead, Cyren Call, which served as an advisor to the Public Safety Spectrum Trust (PSST) in the auction, answered questions from potential bidders for the D block, a 10MHz block of spectrum that was to be paired with a second 10MHz block controlled by the PSST, said Morgan O'Brien, Cyren Call's chairman. Under the FCC's auction plan, the winner of the D block would be required to use the two blocks of spectrum to build a nationwide wireless network to be shared by commercial users and public safety agencies such as police and fire departments. The D block didn't meet the $1.33 billion minimum price set by the FCC, and the agency hasn't yet decided what to do with the spectrum. Some consumer groups, including Public Knowledge and Consumers Union, called for an investigation of bidding requirements added to the spectrum by the public safety community. Some lawmakers have also talked about looking into private conditions placed on the D block. But O'Brien, in a statement Thursday, said potential bidders approached Cyren Call and the PSST to inquire about possible conditions. The PSST told potential bidders that it did intend to request a lease payment of $50 million per year from the winning bidder for the spectrum it controlled, but that was within the FCC guidelines, O'Brien said. (Published 4/4/08)
http://www.infoworld.com/article/08/04/04/Controversy-surrounds-unsold-s...