AT&T’s Spectrum Acquisition Proposal Faces Opposition from Sprint and T-Mobile

The U.S. telecom players' thirst for spectrum seems insatiable. Since wireless airwaves is the life blood of a telecom provider, there is continuous fight to purchase additional airwaves. And low band frequency, in particular, attracts special interest from telecom players. Second largest U.S. wireless provider, AT&T (T), has proposed quite a few deals involving the purchase of low band airwaves in the 700 MHz spectrum block. Obviously, it has impacted other players in the industry.

The reaction and opposition Verizon (VZ) and AT&T are the two stalwarts of the U.S. telecom industry. Though Sprint (S) and T-Mobile (TMUS) hold the third and fourth spot, they are way behind the two biggies. FCC chairman Tom Wheeler said that Verizon and AT&T "hold a combined share of almost two-thirds of all low-band spectrum licenses" compared with the other two national providers Sprint and T-Mobile who jointly hold less than 10% of the low band frequencies.

So any action undertaken by either Verizon or AT&T, with respect to purchasing further spectrum in the lower frequency band, has to deal with a heavy scrutiny from the FCC and strong opposition from their smaller rivals. This is what exactly happened with AT&T now after its proposal for buying spectrum in the 700 MHz spectrum band.

Other than Sprint and T-Mobile, other parties opposing the proposal include numerous public interest and industry groups. If the airwave proposal forwarded by AT&T is given a go-ahead signal by the FCC, the Dallas-based company would reign nearly a third of the highly-coveted frequency below the 1 GHz range. Back in May, the FCC decided that any spectrum purchase transaction that increased the spectrum holding of the carrier to this extent would draw severe scrutiny from the regulator.

An unfair advantage Verizon and AT&T already have great advantage over Sprint and T-Mobile in terms of market share, spectrum holding, and financial cushioning. AT&T's current spectrum proposal would further increase the gap. Therefore Sprint, T-Mobile and among others the New America Foundation, Comptel, Computer & Communications Industry Association, the Writers Guild of America, West, Public Knowledge, and Free Press have forwarded a signed letter to the FCC, requesting the regulatory body to scrutini