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Bush administration sees 25 billion dollars in wireless auctions
USA Created: 7 Feb 2006
The Bush administration is looking to reduce the federal deficit with extended wireless frequency band auctions.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The sale of U.S. wireless communications licenses is projected to raise about $25 billion between 2007 and 2009, $7.8 billion higher than last year's estimate, according President George W. Bush's 2007 budget released on Monday.
The Federal Communications Commission is slated to start selling 90 megahertz of wireless airwaves on June 29, an auction that Wall Street analysts have said could raise as much as $15 billion.
Those airwaves are expected to be used for advanced mobile communications like high-speed Internet and video services. Major U.S. wireless carriers like T-Mobile and Verizon Wireless are expected to bid in the sale.
The Bush budget estimated that $9.95 billion from wireless auctions would be received in the 2007 fiscal year, which starts October 1, 2006. It also expects almost $12.24 billion in the 2008 fiscal year that starts October 1, 2007.
Additionally the budget projects $2.87 billion being received in the 2009 fiscal year. Bush's budget last year had estimated wireless auctions would bring in $17.2 billion between fiscal years 2007 and 2009.
The auction proceeds would come as the Bush administration tries to substantially reduce the federal deficit by 2009. Bush proposed a $2.77 trillion budget for fiscal 2007, which would leave a $354 billion deficit for the year.
Auctions can last weeks depending on the bidding strategies of wireless carriers, which often bid to acquire airwaves so they can expand and improve services.
The FCC is also expected to start selling by early 2008 wireless airwaves that television broadcasters are giving up as they move to other frequencies for their higher-quality digital broadcasts. That move is slated to be done by February 17, 2009.
Congress last year ordered the FCC to start that sale by January 28, 2008 and the proceeds be deposited by June 30, 2008. Plus, the law designated almost $7.4 billion in proceeds from that sale to be used to help reduce the federal deficit.

Read the entire article at Reuters.com here:
http://today.reuters.com/news/newsArticle.aspx?storyID=2006-02-07T002524Z_01_N06327829_RTRUKOC_0_US-BUSH-BUDGET-WIRELESS.xml

Forbes.com: Making Airwaves.
NEW YORK - American wireless carriers should soon have some more elbow room for high-speed Internet access and mobile video. The U.S. government's plan to vacate 90 megahertz of the wireless spectrum is moving forward and may cost the government less money than previously estimated.
The U.S. Commerce Department's National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) said last Wednesday that moving federal users out of the 1710-1755 megahertz band will cost about $935 million--less expensive than previous industry estimates that topped $2 billion. Bands that are thereby freed up will be auctioned for commercial purposes starting as soon as this June, providing new air space for advanced wireless services.

Read the entire article at Forbes.com here:
http://www.forbes.com/intelligentinfrastructure/2006/01/03/cell-spectrum-shifts-cx_df_0104spectrum.html

The Register: "US gov optimistic on wireless auctions"
The US government now expects, or hopes, to raise $25bn between 2007 and 2009 - rather than the $17.2bn it originally predicted. The Federal Communications Commission will start by selling off 90MHz of airwaves in June, which could raise as much as $15bn.
The FCC will sell off spectrum currently used by TV broadcasters as they move to high definition frequencies in 2008. Internet companies and mobile carriers are expected to bid for the radiowaves, which could be used for video-streaming or faster internet access.

Read the entire article at The Register here:
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2006/02/07/us_gov_wireless_auctions/
Source: Reuters.com, Jeremy Pelofsky, 6 feb. 2006 / Forbes.com, Dan Frommer, 6 feb. 2006 / TheRegister.co.uk, John Oates, 7 feb. 2006

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