AT&T could boycott next US spectrum auction
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AT&T could boycott next US spectrum auction

AT&T, the second-largest player in the US mobile market, has said it may sit out of the next wave of auctions for airwaves if the FCC persists with rules to reserve bandwidth for smaller carriers.

The FCC chairman Tom Wheeler has proposed plans to reserve 30MHz worth of spectrum blocks for any wireless players that do not already own large amounts of low-frequency airwaves, according to Reuters.

AT&T has reportedly said it could consider alternative spectrum opportunities that better serve their aims to deploy LTE across the US, if the FCC presses ahead with its plans.

“If the restrictions as proposed are adopted, AT&T will need to seriously consider whether its capital and resources are directed toward other spectrum opportunities that will better enable AT&T to continue to support high-quality LTE network deployments to serve its customers,” AT&T’s VP of federal regulatory, Joan Marsh, said in a filing.

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