[Federal Register Volume 63, Number 23 (Wednesday, February 4, 1998)]
[Notices]
[Pages 5803-5804]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 98-2700]


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FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION

[DA 97-2634]


FCC Announces Auction Schedule for the General Wireless 
Communications Service

Released December 17, 1997.
    This Public Notice apprises potential applicants of important dates 
for the auction of licenses for the General Wireless Communications 
Service (``GWCS''). The dates listed below may be subject to change. 
This auction will consist of 875 GWCS licenses in the 4660 to 4685 MHz 
bands. Five licenses of five megahertz each will be offered in each of 
172 EAs and three EA-like areas in the United States. The five licenses 
in each EA and EA-like area will be designated as blocks A through E. 
Each frequency block encompasses the following spectrum:

Block A: 4660-4665 MHz.
Block B: 4665-4670 MHz.
Block C: 4670-4675 MHz.
Block D: 4675-4680 MHz.
Block E: 4680-4685 MHz.

Key Dates

Short form (FCC Form 175) Application Deadline: April 28, 1998
Upfront Payment Deadline: May 11, 1998.
Auction Commencement Date: May 27, 1998.

    Further details on this spectrum may be found in the, Allocation of 
Spectrum Below 5 GHz Transferred from Federal Government Use, ET Docket 
No. 94-32, GWCS Second Report and Order, Second Report and Order, FCC 
95-319, 60 FR 40712 (released August 9, 1995) (reconsideration 
pending). Public

[[Page 5804]]

notices and a bidder information package will provide upfront payment 
information and specific terms and conditions concerning the auction.

Bidder Alerts

     The FCC does not approve any individual investment 
proposal, nor does it provide a warranty with respect to any license 
being auctioned. Potential applicants and investors are reminded that 
winning a license in an FCC spectrum auction in not a guarantee of 
success in the marketplace.
     The FCC makes no representations or warranties about the 
use of spectrum for particular services. Applicants should be aware 
that an FCC auction represents an opportunity to become an FCC 
licensee, subject to certain conditions and regulations. An FCC auction 
does not constitute an endorsement by the FCC of any particular 
services, technologies, or products, nor does an FCC license constitute 
a guarantee of business success. Applicants should perform their 
individual due diligence before proceeding, as they would with any new 
business venture.
     The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has found that some 
unscrupulous individuals have designed investment schemes around 
licenses auctioned or to be auctioned by the FCC. If you have an 
inquiry or complaint about a specific investment offering, call the 
National Fraud Information Center, 1-800-876-7060, or visit that 
organization's Internet web site at www.fraud.org. You also may contact 
your state attorney general or state corporations office. The FTC and 
the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) receive complaints on 
investment fraud and offer consumer education materials. Contact the 
FTC at 202-326-3128 or visit its Internet web site at www.ftc.gov. 
Contact the SEC at 202-942-7040 or visit its Internet web site at 
www.sec.gov.
     Potential applicants should also be aware of pending 
rulemaking proceeding in which the FCC is considering changes to many 
of the auction rules, including attribution of gross revenues of 
investors in and affiliates of small businesses and whether to continue 
to permit small businesses to pay for licenses won in installment 
payments. See Amendment of Part 1 of the Commission's Rules--
Competitive Bidding Proceeding. WT Docket No. 97-82, Order, Memorandum 
Opinion and Order and Notice of Proposed Rule Making, 12 FCC Rcd 5686 
(1997). Changes also recently have been adopted with respect to foreign 
ownership of U.S. telecommunications facilities. See Rules and Policies 
on Foreign Participation in the U.S. Telecommunications Market, IB 
Docket No. 97-142, Market Entry and Regulation of Foreign-Affiliated 
Entities, IB Docket No. 95-22, Report and Order and Order on 
Reconsideration, FCC 97-398, 62 FR 64741, (released December 9, 1997) 
Potential applicants should also be aware of pending petitions for 
reconsideration of the GWCS Second Report and Order, decisions on which 
can be expected in the next few months. In addition, potential 
applicants should be aware of government operations in adjacent 
frequency bands and in certain geographic areas that need to be taken 
into account by commercial operations in the 4600-4685 Mhz band. The 
FCC is working with the Department of Commerce National 
Telecommunications and Information Administration to release 
information regarding these government operations, which will be 
provided in a later public notice. Finally, potential applicants should 
be aware that when FCC licenses are subject to auction (i.e., because 
they are mutually exclusive) the recently enacted Balanced Budget Act 
of 1997 calls upon the FCC to prescribe methods by which a reasonable 
reserve price will be required or a minimum opening bid established, 
unless the FCC determines that a reserve price or minimum bid is not in 
the public interest. See Section 3002(a), Balanced Budget Act of 1997, 
Public Law 105-33, 111 Stat. 251 (1997); 47 U.S.C. Section 
309(j)(4)(F). The FCC's authority to establish a reserve price or 
minimum opening bid is set forth in 47 CFR 1.2104(c) and (d).
    For further information, contact Kathy Garland, Lisa Hartigan, or 
LaVonia Connelly, Auctions and Industry Analysis Division, Wireless 
Telecommunications Bureau, at (202) 418-0660.

Federal Communications Commission.
Magalie Roman Salas,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. 98-2700 Filed 2-3-98; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6712-01-M