FCC Denies $3.3 Billion in Bidding Credits to AWS-3 Auction Winners, Requires Full Payment in 30 Days
By Stephen J. Matzura and Marty Stern
The FCC unanimously adopted an order released earlier this week denying approximately $3.3 billion in small business bidding credits to SNR Wireless LicenseCo, LLC and Northstar Wireless, LLC, two entities financed by DISH Network Corporation that had won licenses in the AWS-3 auction which concluded in January (Auction 97). The auction, which had net winning bids of over $41 billion, significantly exceeded expectations and has been termed a “whopping success” from a revenue standpoint. In a statement issued prior to the order’s release, Commission Chairman Tom Wheeler stated that the entities “are not eligible for bidding credits” based on the Commission’s “fact-based analysis,” which “ensures that bidding credits only go to the small businesses our rules aim to serve.” The Commission’s order, released the following day, details the Commission’s analysis of whether DISH revenues should be attributed to SNR and Northstar based on its degree of control over the entities.