The FCC, has approved AT&T's request to reexamine its proposed purchase of 4G spectrum from Qualcomm and has gone ahead and approved the deal with some minor requirements. When AT&T announced it was pulling out of its proposed $39 billion purchase of T-Mobile, it requested that the government quickly take another look to approve its purchase of the spectrum from Qualcomm. The spectrum being purchased by AT&T is the 700MHz frequency that Qualcomm had been using for its now defunct Flo TV service. As part of the deal for granting approval, AT&T must guard against interference on nearby frequencies and also allow roaming from phones and tablets on rival networks. The agreement could take effect by the end of the year.
Approval for the $1.9 billion deal might seem like a consolation prize given to AT&T after the latter had to pull out of its bid to buy T-Mobile. When AT&T withdrew its application to make the purchase from the FCC, the commission hinted at an approval for the deal with Qualcomm. And though many of AT&T's rivals and public advocacy groups were delighted with AT&T's decision not to pursue the nation's fourth largest carrier, the same organizations and competitors are not pleased with the FCC's approval of the Qualcomm deal. AT&T is not being forced to have the 700MHz spectrum it purchased work with that from Verizon or other carriers.
Qualcomm stands to make a handsome profit on the spectrum. It paid $38 million for one slice of nationwide spectrum — the former UHF channel 55 — in 2002, then another $558 million in 2008 for UHF channel 56 over New York, Los Angeles, Boston, Philadelphia, and San Francisco.
