FCC Fights Dish DEs Seeking Writ of Certiorari in AWS-3 Fight

Any Supreme Court review of Dish Network's de facto control of designated entities SNR Wireless and Northstar Wireless would be premature since the issue is before the FCC in an attempt at letting the petitioner DEs fix the control problem, the agency said in a Supreme Court docket 17-1058 respondent brief posted Tuesday. It opposed the DEs' petition for writ of certiorari; experts have said the odds aren't clear of the court taking up the petition regarding agency handling of the AWS-3 auction bidding credits (see 1801290033). The FCC said its negotiations with Dish to fix the control problem are ongoing and could eliminate the practical significance of the case. It said if the FCC sticks to its ineligibility finding at the end of the remanded proceedings, the DEs could then seek juridical review. That the feasibility of an amendment that both sides agree on is questionable isn't a reason to grant review now, the agency said. It waved off the DEs' argument that the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit erred in finding the DEs should have anticipated the FCC would find them under de facto Dish control, saying the appellate court applied the test the DEs advocated and failed to show any error in the test the court used. The DEs have complained about not getting FCC feedback on proposed fixes (see 1805070028). The DEs, FCC and Dish didn't comment.