FCC Approves T-Mobile Buy of 600 MHz Spectrum From Columbia Capital

The FCC approved Friday a 2022 T-Mobile application to purchase 600 MHz licenses it was leasing from Columbia Capital, dismissing a Dish Network challenge. T-Mobile reported the deal was worth $3.5 billion. Analysts said when T-Mobile filed the application FCC approval was likely, especially since the carrier is already using the frequencies (see 2208090053).

“After carefully evaluating the potential competitive effects of the proposed assignments, we find that the likelihood of competitive harm is low,” said the order by the Wireless Bureau and Office of Economics and Analytics. “We emphasize that the Commission’s screen is not a hard cap on a company’s holdings, but rather a trigger for further competitive analysis regarding the impact of a proposed transaction on the market for wireless services.”

The licenses in the proposed transaction “were previously leased to T-Mobile by Channel 51 and LB License through long-term spectrum manager leasing arrangements,” the FCC said. “As such, T-Mobile is already attributed with the spectrum, and T-Mobile currently provides service using this 600 MHz spectrum.”

In a May petition, Dish said the FCC should “draw a line here if it is to encourage robust competition in the wireless market.” T-Mobile “was permitted to acquire spectrum in excess of the Commission’s spectrum screen when the Commission approved its acquisition of Sprint in 2020,” Dish said: “The Commission green-lit that concentration on the grounds that it would facilitate T-Mobile’s 5G deployment.” That rationale “is no longer valid” because T-Mobile now reports its 5G deployment covers 98% of U.S. POPs, Dish said.

T-Mobile noted in a public interest statement it already deploys service using the spectrum. “This has led directly to T-Mobile providing significantly faster speeds, enhanced capacity, and a far better user experience with more advanced use cases in those areas,” it said.

The FCC found that conditions Dish requested “are not transaction-specific, and its proposed remedies are beyond the scope of these applications.” Dish asked that the FCC “hold the applications in abeyance” until the agency acts on an AT&T petition seeking revised spectrum aggregation rules, the order said: “To the extent DISH asks us to reexamine broader spectrum aggregation and competition issues, we note that we have sought comment on mobile spectrum holding policies more generally.” The FCC sought comment on the AT&T petition in a September notice, with reply comments filed in November (see 2311090051).

The order includes an analysis of major carriers' spectrum holdings on a region-by-region basis. In the mid-Atlantic, the FCC found that in eight major markets T-Mobile would hold a maximum of 430 MHz of spectrum post-transaction. That’s compared with AT&T, with 255-291 MHz, Verizon 277-297 and Dish 125-141. The order notes other carriers' recent purchases, especially in the C-band and 3.45 GHz auctions. “Multiple other licensees hold between 10 and 20 megahertz of spectrum on a county-by-county basis across these markets,” the order said.

In another year-end win, T-Mobile is also gaining access to the 2.5 GHz licenses it won in a 2022 auction following action by Congress (see 2312200061).