Auction bid triggers airwaves open access

By Peter Kaplan

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A bidder on Thursday offered $4.71 billion for a key slice of wireless airwaves being sold by the government, triggering a condition that the spectrum be accessible to any device or software application.

After 17 auction rounds, the bidding for the "C" block of 700 megahertz spectrum surpassed a $4.64 billion minimum set by the Federal Communications Commission.

As a result, the winner of the airwaves will have to abide by the open-access conditions, which had been sought by Internet search leader Google Inc (GOOG.O: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) and adopted by the FCC before the auction.

There were no further bids on the C-block airwaves in the subsequent round of the auction, a development that could mean the bidding on the C-block airwaves is over.

Bidders were given a handful of waivers at the start of the auction that allow them to sit out a round and still remain eligible to rejoin the bidding later. But Stifel Nicolaus analyst Rebecca Arbogast said all the bidders' waivers have probably been used.

The bidders' identities are being kept secret, under FCC rules, until the entire auction ends. However, analysts have said the most likely bidders for the C block airwaves are either Verizon Wireless or Google.

Verizon Wireless is a joint venture of Verizon Communications Inc (VZ.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) and Vodafone Group Plc (VOD.L: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz).

The C block is one of five pieces of 700-megahertz spectrum being offered in auction. The 700-megahertz signals are valuable because they can go long distances and penetrate thick walls. The airwaves are being returned by television broadcasters as they move to digital from analog signals in early 2009.  Continued...