FCC Spectrum Auction Draws $2.4 Billion In Bids In First Round

Dow Jones Newswires (excerpt) ^ | DOW JONES NEWSWIRES | Corey Boles

[HAL9000]

Excerpt -

WASHINGTON -(Dow Jones)- The first round of the much-anticipated Federal Communications Commission auction of communications airwaves drew $2.4 billion in prospective bids before closing at midday Thursday, according to the agency.

Nearly half the money, some $1.04 billion, was bid by one participant seeking a national license for a swath of 22 megahertz of radio spectrum. The bidding for a second national license of 10 megahertz topped out at $472 million in the first round. Both these bids are believed to be the minimum bid allowed in the first round for these chunks of spectrum.

The information was released on a Website set up by the FCC to release auction results. The auction rules state that no information will be released as to how many bidders are vying for each license or who the bidders are.

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[BreezyDog]

Google is probably going for the 22 megs...

[JOAT]

I like how the goobermint thinks it ‘owns’ the spectrum somehow.

[Goldwater and Gingrich]

I Don’t want the “goobermint” doing half of what it does but the spectrum does need to be managed somehow.

I am fascinated to see how much the big guys will pay to keep Google out of the market. I think the final bid will be over 10 billion!

When you look at the mobile market there is no real reason that the cost should be much higher than a land line. Google will offer service at a vary low price or even for free with just some advertisement. The big players will pay anything to maintain their captive market.

Big money will be spent here.