FCC Establishes Expedited Pleading Cycle on Crown Castle/Quanta Fiber Deal

The FCC established an expedited pleading cycle on a $1 billion deal under which Crown Castle proposes to buy Quanta Fiber Networks, also called Sunesys. The companies sought FCC blessing last week (see 1505280013). The transaction would give tower company Crown Castle 10,000 miles of fiber in major metropolitan markets across the U.S., including Atlanta, Chicago, Los Angeles, northern New Jersey, Philadelphia and Silicon Valley, the companies told the FCC. Comments are due June 17, replies June 24, said a Wednesday notice from the agency. "The transfer of control identified herein has been found, upon initial review, to be acceptable for filing as a streamlined application," the notice said, but the application can be returned if it's "defective and not in conformance with the Commission’s rules and policies."