The upcoming 700MHz spectrum auctions by the U.S. Federal Communications Commission
have drawn bid applications from giant companies including Google and AT&T.
But a number of small companies and individuals have submitted bid applications
as well.

Late Tuesday, the FCC announced that it had accepted bids from 96 applicants
and has another 170 applications that are incomplete for the auction of highly
coveted spectrum that can be used for voice or wireless broadband service.

Some of those applicants may not complete their applications. In the FCC's
advanced wireless services auction in 2006, 252 organizations submitted applications,
and there were 168 qualified bidders.

It's typical that several initial applicants will bow out before they have
to submit deposit payments, said analyst Jack Gold of J. Gold Associates. "When
it comes to putting down earnest money, many [applicants] back away or can't
get the money," he said.

Applicants have until Jan. 4 to pay their deposits or resubmit their applications
for the auction, which begins Jan. 24.

The FCC designed the auction in an effort to attract small bidders. Up for
sale is 62MHz of spectrum in the 700MHz band, now occupied by U.S. television
stations. In late 2005, Congress passed legislation requiring U.S. TV stations
to move to all-digital broadcasts and abandon analog spectrum between channels
52 and 69. The deadline for TV stations to end broadcasts in the 700MHz band
is February 2009.

The spectrum is broken up into five blocks, with three of the five blocks divided
into small geographic areas. A 12MHz block of spectrum called the A block is
divided up into 176 small geographic areas, called economic areas, as is the
6MHz E block. The 12MHz B block is broken up into 734 local areas called cellular
market areas. Bidders can win multiple regional or local licenses.

But the chances of small companies winning significant amounts of spectrum
is "pretty slim," Gold said. "Any areas with significant population
densities will bring in the big boys, who seek revenues from a mass market,"
he said. "I suppose some smallish rural areas may be of less interest to
AT&T [or] Verizon, but these guys want true countrywide networks, so they
will likely bid there anyway."

Several unfamiliar names are among the prospective bidders who submitted incomplete
applications:

-- Office of Spectral Ecology, listed as an unincorporated association, with
one board member, based in Montreal.

-- Dragon Arch, listed as a corporation based in New York City.

-- FaithFone Wireless,
a Phoenix wireless carrier launched in September 2006. FaithFone is a self-described
"purpose-driven Christian mobile phone company, offering a cell phone service
combining faith and family content." FaithFone's wireless service offers
daily devotionals, Bible passages and a prayer of the day through text messaging.

-- The Navajo Department
of Information Technology.

-- Part-15.org, a nonprofit
organization for users of unlicensed wireless spectrum.

Smaller companies, with annual revenue of less than US$15 million, that have
submitted complete applications include:

-- Grain Spectrum, based in
Sarasota, Florida, a minority-owned company focused on building wireless networks
for government users.

-- GreenFly, a mobile
services provider founded in 2006 and based in Scottsbluff, Nebraska.

-- Xpressweb Internet
Services, an Internet service provider based in Kanab, Utah.

The auction, expected to raise more than US$10 billion, is likely to last several
weeks. Many spectrum experts call the 700MHz band "beachfront" property
because it can carry wireless broadband signals three to four times farther
than some other spectrum bands.

Since early December, applicants have been in an FCC-mandated quiet period.
The FCC spectrum auction rules prohibit collusion on bidding plans.

IDG News Service

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