Tag Archives: nextwave
AT&T scores WCS spectrum victory, covers 608 markets and 82 percent of Americans
The wireless landscape shifted a bit today, as the FCC has made good on its promise to allow AT&T's deployment of LTE service over the WCS band. In all, the regulatory agency approved Ma Bell's acquisition of licenses to the underutilized 2.3GHz spectrum from Comcast, Horizon, NextWave and San Diego Gas and Electric, along with additional AWS spectrum from NextWave. The licenses cover 82 percent of the population across 608 markets within the continental US. If you're an AT&T subscriber, however, don't expect to benefit from the deal overnight. By the carrier's own admission, it'll take at least three years to build up the proper infrastructure and introduce devices that support WCS, which means you're likely to go through a new iPhone or two between now and then. In the meantime, feel free to soak in the nitty gritty details at the source.
[Cell tower photo credit: Ashish Sharma / Flickr]
Filed under: Wireless, Mobile, AT&T
Via: PhoneScoop
Source: FCC Order (PDF)
FCC chairman green-lights AT&T’s use of WCS spectrum for LTE with proposed order
AT&T is close to securing a major victory in its battle against the spectrum crunch. While it's not quite a done deal, FCC chairman Genachowski has submitted a proposed order to FCC commissioners that would authorize AT&T's deployment of its LTE service within a 20MHz portion of the 2.3GHz (WCS) band. The deal is unique in that the spectrum is currently reserved for satellite radio, and the reallocation would mark the first of its kind within the WCS band. As you may recall, AT&T previously conceded to a 5MHz dead zone on both ends of Sirius XM's operating frequency in order to mitigate interference concerns, and it seems the move was sufficient to gain the chairman's support.
Also looming on the FCC's to-do list is the decision of whether to approve AT&T's purchase NextWave and its unused WCS spectrum. If it's any indication, however, Chairman Genachowski seems bullish on the reallocation and has suggested that the agency may authorize another 30MHz of the WCS band for mobile broadband use. AT&T has previously said that it could feasibly deploy LTE over the 2.3GHz spectrum within the next three years. One group fighting the deal is the Competitive Carrier Association, which posits that AT&T's purchase of such a significant chunk of spectrum on the secondary market is anti-competitive in nature. It'll no doubt be interesting to see if the argument gains any traction with the FCC. In the meantime, you can view remarks from the agency's spokesperson after the break.
Continue reading FCC chairman green-lights AT&T's use of WCS spectrum for LTE with proposed order
Filed under: Cellphones, Wireless, Mobile
FCC chairman green-lights AT&T's use of WCS spectrum for LTE with proposed order originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 27 Sep 2012 07:11:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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FCC, GigaOM | Email this | Comments AT&T to Acquire NextWave Wireless
AT&T announced today that it has agreed to acquire NextWave Wireless, Inc. NextWave holds licenses in the Wireless Communication Services (WCS) and Advanced Wireless Service (AWS) bands.WCS...
AT&T agrees to acquire NextWave for $600 million, gobbles up WCS and AWS spectrum
AT&T's making no secret of the fact it wants to snatch up as much spectrum as it possibly can, so news of the company's proposed acquisition of NextWave Wireless doesn't result in much of a shock. AT&T has agreed to purchase the company -- and all of its WCS (Wireless Communication Service) and AWS spectrum licenses and equity along with it -- for $25 million, pending FCC approval. If you count $25 million in contingency costs and the outstanding debt the big blue globe has also picked up, however, the total bill climbs to $600 million.
The deal comes shortly after AT&T partnered with Sirius XM to petition the FCC in the hopes that it would allow WCS (2.3GHz) spectrum to be opened up for LTE use -- mobile data is currently restricted by the federal body to prevent any interference with satellite radio. The government hasn't given the green light for this proposal yet (additionally, the NextWave deal isn't likely to be approved until later this year), but that's not stopping AT&T from its preparations just in case -- it plans to have WCS LTE ready for deployment in three years if everything works out in the carrier's favor.
Continue reading AT&T agrees to acquire NextWave for $600 million, gobbles up WCS and AWS spectrum
Filed under: Cellphones, Wireless
AT&T agrees to acquire NextWave for $600 million, gobbles up WCS and AWS spectrum originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 02 Aug 2012 10:05:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Permalink |BusinessWire | Email this | Comments AT&T strikes a deal with Sirius XM to make 2.3GHz LTE a reality, pitches it to the FCC
AT&T has been a little more eager than usual to get spectrum after a certain big deal fell through, and we now know that Big Blue has been willing to bury a few outstanding hatchets to make that happen. The carrier has filed with the FCC to propose a deal with Sirius XM that would get its LTE-based 4G running on the 2.3GHz Wireless Communications Service (WCS) that, normally, satellite radio intersects. Rather than stay at an impasse, AT&T has agreed to a 5MHz dead zone on either end of Sirius XM's frequencies that would mitigate the risk of that Internet video stream colliding with Howard Stern. The provider still needs clearance to go ahead, and might not exactly get a resounding thumbs-up from WCS holder NextWave, which stands to lose more than a small piece of its airwave pie. An FCC all-clear would nonetheless raise the chances that AT&T keeps LTE flowing freely as subscribers pile on the network, even after the telecom behemoth conceded spectrum to T-Mobile.
AT&T strikes a deal with Sirius XM to make 2.3GHz LTE a reality, pitches it to the FCC originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 19 Jun 2012 17:16:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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