Sprint grants LightSquared new extension to get FCC clearance

Sprint Nextel granted billionaire Philip Falcone's LightSquared a new six-week extension to get Federal Communications Commission clearance to operate its planned nationwide fourth-generation network.

A Sprint spokesman said the carrier had given LightSquared until mid-March to resolve FCC concerns its network interferes with global-positioning systems. That follows a 30-day extension gave LightSquared at the end of last year. Getting the FCC's approval is a condition of Sprint and LightSquared's 15-year accord to share spectrum and network construction and equipment costs. LightSquared has said the agreement will help it save about $13 billion through the end of this decade.

The FCC is accepting public comment until Feb. 27 on LightSquared's argument that GPS device manufacturers aren't entitled to legal protection from interference caused by its signals.