MuniWireless

After writing rules that all but guaranteed failure for the auction of the “D” block of the 700 MHz spectrum lotto, the FCC is now starting on its second attempt to reach spectral nirvana — as in getting money through auction while also getting someone, somehow, to build a public/private network whose prime beneficiary is public safety.

Watching people like Morgan O’Brien make sausage out of the first attempt has left a bad taste in the mouths of many who would have liked to have seen the original auction, and perhaps the ambitious plans of Frontline Wireless succeed. But now, smart folks like Susan Crawford are asking whether the public-private plan is needed or wanted. Saying the FCC’s latest order smacks of desperation, Crawford goes on to say:

“This proceeding seems like a deeply difficult one - and the Commission is sounding slightly desperate. They may be writing rules for something that no commercial actor may feel is worth investing in — and that may end up not being useful for the public safety actors concerned.”

The FCC NPRM is here.

Paul Kapustka is the editor of Sidecut Reports, which has recently published a report on the state of WiMax deployments in the U.S.