FCC Names Qualified 700MHz Spectrum Auction Bidders

The FCC on Monday released the list of companies authorized to bid in the upcoming 700MHz spectrum auction.

AT&T Inc., Google Inc. and Verizon Wireless are among the big names. MetroPCS Communications Inc. and Vulcan Spectrum Management Inc., an investment firm backed by Microsoft Corp. co-founder Paul Allen (Allen also is the majority shareholder of cableco Charter Communications) are included in the list of 214 qualifiers as well.

Newcomer Frontline Wireless, which closed its doors last week, was one of the 27 companies that didn’t qualify to bid.

The 700MHz is set to begin Jan. 24. The spectrum is comprised of former UHF airwaves, which could be used for WiMAX and other broadband wireless technologies. It could raise as much as $15 billion.

Click here to review the full list of qualified bidders.

AT&T Inc. www.att.com
FCC www.fcc.gov
Google Inc. www.google.com
MetroPCS www.metropcs.com