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T-Mobile says FCC should let it buy the spectrum in question instead.
T-Mobile US this week again called on the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to block AT&T’s planned acquisition of rural sub-1-GHz spectrum.
AT&T struck a deal to purchase 700-MHz frequencies in Ohio, Kentucky and West Virginia from East Kentucky Network for an undisclosed fee in May 2015. Weeks later, T-Mobile petitioned the FCC to oppose the deal, arguing that it harms competition because AT&T already commands a dominant share of these markets, and therefore acquiring more spectrum further strengthens its position.
Unsurprisingly, AT&T refuted these arguments, claiming that extra spectrum will enable it to offer higher-quality services. It also made the point that it has invested in parts of the U.S. where T-Mobile has not.
On Tuesday, T-Mobile US sent another letter to the FCC arguing that approving the transaction would set a dangerous precedent that encourages AT&T to keep buying up spectrum in order shut rivals out of the market.
"If the FCC were to approve this transaction, AT&T would have no incentive to stop acquiring low-band spectrum in rural areas, but rather will logically seek to extend its foreclosure strategy to suburban and urban areas where any one transaction could close the door on competitive choice," argued T-Mobile US counsel Trey Hanbury, in the letter.
He also reasserted the claim that AT&T’s East Kentucky deal violates FCC rules stipulating that no single carrier can hold more than a third of the available sub-1-GHz spectrum in a given market, a claim that AT&T has previously refuted.
Rather than let the deal go through, the FCC should let another carrier, namely T-Mobile, buy the spectrum instead, Hanbury said.
"T-Mobile stands ready to acquire the spectrum…and if allowed to do so, will deploy the spectrum quickly for the benefit of consumers," he said.
