Bidding for the national franchise in the C block started at $1.037 billion in the morning and was raised to $1.245 billion in the afternoon. The reserve price for the national C block is $4.6 billion. (Google has said it will bid at least $4.6 billion for this block, but there is no requirement that it place a bid in that amount at first.)This is just like that one time when I bit on those cute vintage boots, but then at the last minute stupid Verizon Wireless came along with their $5 billion and...There will be three rounds of bidding on Friday, but none over the weekend. Mr. Levin said that by mid-February it would become clear whether the bids for the national blocks will exceed their reserve prices.
Spectrum Auction Day 1: $2.779 Billion in Bids [NYT]
Auction 73 700 MHz Band [FCC]
@timmus: The topic is "What this spectrum of wireless transmition means to me."
]]>@Rachacha: We all own the spectrum. It's public property and the FCC is selling it for us to (a) distribute it to companies that will hopefully do something interesting with it and (b) make some bank, yo.
]]>Let's all pool our money that we will be receiving from the Economy stimulation plan and buy the spectrum ourselves...by my calculations we should be able to come up with $100 Billion give or take. Anyone with me?
]]>The bidding rules are so complex that it makes Texas Hold'em look like Go Fish. To stay in the auction, companies need to bid a minimum amount each round. But they can move their bids around, meaning that often companies "park" their bids in auctions they are not really interested in to see how the bidding emerges for the auctions they do care about. What is more, bidders get three waivers - rounds in which they do not need to bid anything. And they strategically drop out for a round to try to assess their competition.
Does that not sound like an awesome game to play?
After it's all over I hope they show the bid history like eBay does.
]]>@K-Bo:
Fair enough, but that's a separate issue.
]]>@scoosdad:
You also get to either (a) pay lower taxes or (b) have a smaller share of the national debt.
]]>That's pretty much it. If they require the first bid to be $4.6BN, and it doesn't attract a bid, all they know is "4.6BN is too much." If they let people bid below $4.6BN, they know "$4.6BN is too much, BUT people were willing to pay $4.1BN."
]]>1)to build up buying momentum and competitiveness, so once it hops past the reserve the buyers will keep on rolling strong
2)Because if it doesn't meet the reserve, the seller could suck it up and sell it anyway?
]]>Cool! When do I get my check?
]]>Re: that last comment,
I would argue that the FCC's biggest effort to stifle competition lies in efforts to lower barriers for the consolidation of media ownership, despite a great and righteous public outcry against it.
]]>@yg17: It costs the FCC nothing, but the winner of the auction may make enormous profit on their investment. The spectrum belongs to the people and the funds from the auction go to the people.
The auction and licensing is there so that the spectrum is regulated. If it wasn't regulated, everyone would broadcast on whatever spectrum they wanted, there would be all sorts of interference, and nothing would work. If a small cell phone start-up (and that is sort of an oxymoron) wanted to buy into the spectrum, they could always try purchase a license from whoever wins the auction.
The FCC definitely stifles competition, but this auction isn't really related to that.
]]>Yes, yes - something is only worth what someone will pay for it.
And I still have to say, "What the...."???????
]]>@yg17: Probably because it's nothing like "auctioning off air".
Anyone know if this spectrum is available as a result of switching from analog to digital over-the-air broadcast TV?
]]>If there's no way I can win at that price, and EVERYBODY knows what the reserve price is, what's the point of it? A silent reserve I understand. If you aren't ultimately willing to bid at least $4.6, you shouldn't be in the game.
Alright, alright... I bid $3.5 billion.
]]>What the??????
]]>Especially since eBay charges a percentage fee of the reserve price.
]]>