T-Mobile and MetroPCS want to block Verizon spectrum deal

Spectrum has become the cellular industry’s most valuable commodity. AT&T wanted to acquire T-Mobile not only to add its millions of customers, but primarily to obtain its spectrum. You can expect that any deal involving spectrum will come under heavy fire — and the larger the acquiring entity, the heavier the battle. Late last year Verizon brokered a $4 billion deal that would net the company significant spectrum holdings from Comcast, Time Warner, Bright House Networks, and Cox Communications. This week we’ve heard that T-Mobile filed an opposition with the FCC, and now we learn that MetroPCS has done the same. Both companies have good reason to oppose the transaction.

T-Mobile is approaching the issue from a fair competition standpoint. The company believes that Verizon isn’t going to make the best use of any acquired spectrum. They can “warehouse” the spectrum, meaning it can take time to change over towers to LTE technology. T-Mobile does not have that leeway. That could work in their favor, though, as they could put instantly to use any acquired spectrum.

MetroPCS takes a different tack:

MetroPCS took a different approach, urging the FCC to suspend the process on grounds that it can’t take a proper position on the proposal without obtaining more info about the separate service bundling agreements put together by Verizon Wireless and the cable operators.

That seems like more of a long shot, but it doesn’t hurt to ask the FCC to examine the deal further. It’s unclear what these protests will do to change the deal. Given the breakdown of the AT&T – T-Mobile deal, though, it could lead to further FCC intervention.

Via LightReading.

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