[Federal Register Volume 66, Number 25 (Tuesday, February 6, 2001)]
[Notices]
[Pages 9082-9084]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 01-3044]


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FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION

[Report No. AUC-38-D (Auction No. 38); DA 01-138]


Auction of Licenses for 700 Mhz Guard Bands; Status of FCC Form 
175 Applications To Participate in the Auction

AGENCY: Federal Communications Commission.

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: This document announces the status of applications received by 
the Commission to participate in the 700 MHz Guard Bands Auction 
(Auction No. 38). This document identifies three applications that are 
accepted for filing and instructs those applicants on upfront payment 
information, bidding software and other pertinent information in 
reference to the auction. This document also identifies the 2 
applications that have been found to be incomplete.

DATES: Auction No. 38 is scheduled to begin on Tuesday, February 13, 
2001.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Howard Davenport, Auctions Legal 
Branch (regarding legal questions) or Craig Bomberger, Analyst, 
Auctions Operations (regarding bidding and auction structure) at (202) 
418-0660; Linda Sanderson, Auctions Operations (regarding bidding and 
general filing status) at (717) 338-2888.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This is a summary of a Public Notice 
released January 19, 2001 (Auction No. 38 Public Notice). The complete 
text of the Auction No. 38 Public Notice, including attachments, is 
available for inspection and copying during normal business hours in 
the FCC Reference Center (Room CY-A257), 445 12th Street, SW, 
Washington, DC. It may also be purchased form the Commission's copy 
contractor, International Transcription Services, Inc. (ITS, Inc.), 445 
12th Street, SW, Room CY-B400, Washington, DC 20554, (202) 314-3070. 
The Auction No. 38 Public Notice is also available on the Internet at 
the Commission's web site: http://www.fcc.gov/wtb/documents.html.
    List of Attachments available at the FCC:

Attachment A--List of Accepted Applicants
Attachment B--List of Incomplete Applicants
    1. The Federal Communications Commission (``FCC'') has received 5 
FCC Form 175 applications to participate in Auction No. 38 scheduled to 
begin on Tuesday, February 13, 2001, for 8 licenses in the 700 MHz 
Guard Bands spectrum. The applications have been reviewed for 
completeness and compliance with the Commission's rules, and have been 
classified into the following categories:

Accepted for Filing--3 Applications
Incomplete--2 Applications

    Accepted: Applications accepted for filing are listed 
alphabetically in Attachment A. These applicants will become qualified 
bidders upon receipt of the required upfront payment due by 6:00 p.m. 
ET on Friday, January 26, 2001. With respect to the FCC Form 175 
applications, these applicants need take no further action except as 
may be necessary to maintain the accuracy of their applications. Also, 
applicants are advised that Attachment A includes FCC account numbers 
that were automatically created by the FCC software system for each 
applicant, and which are applicable for bidding only.
    Incomplete: Applications found to be incomplete are listed 
alphabetically in Attachment B. Applicants whose FCC

[[Page 9083]]

Form 175 applications have been deemed incomplete will receive 
overnight correspondence indicating what information is required to 
make the applications acceptable for filing. These applicants may 
become qualified bidders only if they: (i) make the required upfront 
payments by 6:00 p.m. ET on Friday, January 26, 2001; and (ii) resubmit 
their applications by 6:00 p.m. ET on Friday, January 26, 2001, to 
correct the minor deficiencies indicated. Applicants must also maintain 
the accuracy of their FCC Form 175 applications as required by the 
Commission's rules. In addition, applicants are advised that Attachment 
B includes FCC account numbers that were automatically created by the 
FCC software system for each applicant. These account numbers are 
applicable for bidding purposes only, should the applicant become 
eligible to participate in Auction No. 38.
    2. The filing window for resubmitting FCC Form 175 applications is 
now open. Corrected applications must be filed no later than 6:00 p.m. 
ET on Friday, January 26, 2001. This will be the only opportunity to 
cure FCC Form 175 defects; late resubmissions will not be accepted. In 
addition, if an application remains incomplete or otherwise deficient 
after the resubmission deadline has passed, the application will be 
rejected.

Upfront Payment Deadline

    3. Upfront payments and accompanying FCC Remittance Advice (FCC 
Form 159) for Auction No. 38 are due at Mellon Bank, Pittsburgh, 
Pennsylvania, no later than 6:00 p.m. ET on Friday, January 26, 2001. 
Payments must be made by wire transfer and applicants must include 
their Taxpayer Identification Numbers (TIN). No other payment method is 
acceptable for this auction. Applicants are reminded to use their TIN 
and not their FCC Account Numbers on the FCC Remittance Advice (FCC 
Form 159).
    4. Applicants that have filed applications deemed to be incomplete, 
as noted in this public notice, must submit timely and sufficient 
upfront payments before the Commission will review their resubmitted 
applications. If such an application remains incomplete following its 
resubmission, the application will be dismissed. If the applicant has 
provided its Taxpayer Identification Number (TIN) and wire transfer 
instructions, the upfront payment will be refunded automatically.
    5. We remind applicants that to avoid untimely upfront payments 
they should discuss arrangements (including bank closing schedules) 
with their banker several days before making the wire transfer, and 
allow sufficient time for the transfer to be initiated and completed 
before the deadline. Detailed information regarding upfront payments 
can be found in the Auction No. 38 Procedures Public Notice, 65 FR 
83024 (December 29, 2000) under section III.D.

Other Important Information

    6. Qualified Bidders: Approximately one week after the upfront 
payment deadline, following Commission review of resubmitted FCC Form 
175 applications, and correlation of payments and applications, a 
public notice listing all applicants qualified to bid in the auction 
will be released. The same public notice will also include instructions 
on how to access the auction tracking tool software, a bidding schedule 
for the Mock Auction, and the bidding schedule for the first day of the 
auction.
    7. Prohibition of Collusion: Bidders are reminded that 
Sec. 1.2105(c) of the Commission's rules prohibits applicants for the 
same geographic license area from communicating with each other during 
the auction about bids, bidding strategies, or settlements unless they 
have identified each other as parties with whom they have entered into 
agreements under Sec. 1.2105(a)(2)(viii). For Auction No. 38, this 
prohibition became effective at the filing deadline of short-form 
applications on Friday, January 12, 2001, and will end on the post-
auction down payment deadline. The post-auction down payment deadline 
will be announced in a future public notice. If parties had agreed in 
principle on all material terms, those parties must have been 
identified on the short-form application under Sec. 1.2105(c), even if 
the agreement had not been reduced to writing. If parties had not 
agreed in principle by the filing deadline, an applicant should not 
have included the names of those parties on its application, and must 
not have continued negotiations with other applicants for licenses in 
the same geographic area. For further details regarding the prohibition 
against collusion refer to the Auction No. 38 Procedures Public Notice 
under section I.B.
    8. Winning bidders will be required to disclose in their long-form 
applications the specific terms, conditions, and parties involved in 
all bidding consortia, joint ventures, partnerships, and other 
arrangements entered into relating to the competitive bidding process. 
Bidders found to have violated the anti-collusion rule may be subject 
to sanctions. In addition, applicants are reminded that they are 
subject to the antitrust laws, which are designed to prevent anti-
competitive behavior in the marketplace. If a bidder is found to have 
violated the antitrust laws in connection with its participation in the 
competitive bidding process, it may be subject to forfeiture of its 
upfront payment, down payment, or full bid amount and may be prohibited 
from participating in future auctions.
    9. Auction Discount Voucher: On June 8, 2000, the Commission 
awarded Qualcomm, Inc. a transferable Auction Discount Voucher in the 
amount of $125,273,878.00. This Auction Discount Voucher may be used by 
Qualcomm or its transferee, in whole or in part, to adjust a winning 
bid in any spectrum auction prior to June 8, 2003, subject to terms and 
conditions set forth in the Commission's Order.
    10. Ex Parte Rule: Applicants should also be aware that the 
Commission has generally exempted auction proceedings from the strict 
requirements of the ex parte rule found in Sec. 1.1208 of the 
Commission's rules.
    11. Mock Auction: All applicants found to be qualified bidders are 
eligible to participate in a mock auction on Friday, February 9, 2001. 
In the Qualified Bidders Public Notice, the Bureau will announce when 
software for the mock auction will be posted on the World Wide Web. 
Telephonic bidding will also be available during the mock auction.
    12. Remote Bidding Software: Applicants are reminded that qualified 
bidders are eligible to bid either electronically or telephonically. To 
bid electronically, applicants must complete the software order form 
included in the Auction No. 38 Procedures Public Notice or contact the 
Auctions Hotline at (717) 338-2888. To ensure timely delivery of remote 
bidding software before the auction begins, the Commission requests 
receipt of software orders by 6:00 p.m. ET on Monday, January 29, 2001.
    13. The FCC Remote Bidding System requires access to a 900 service 
telephone line. The first minute of connection time to the 900 number 
service is at no charge, however, $2.30 will be charged for each 
additional minute. The minimum hardware and software specifications 
required for the FCC remote bidding system are listed:

 CPU: Intel Pentium or above
 RAM: 16 MB (more recommended if you have multiple applications 
open)
 Hard Disk: 33 MB available disk space
 1.44 MB Floppy Drive or CD-ROM Drive (to install the Remote 
Bidding System)

[[Page 9084]]

 Modem: v.32bis 28.8 kbps Hayes compatible modem 
(56.6 kbps recommended)
 Monitor: VGA or above
 Mouse or other pointing device
 Microsoft WindowsTM 95TM or 
98TM
 We recommend that you use Netscape 
CommunicatorTM 4.73. However, you can also use Netscape 
Communicator 4.5, 4.51, 4.61, 4.7 or 4.72.

To download Netscape Communicator 4.73 free of charge, access the 
Netscape download site at http://home.netscape.com/download/


    Note: The FCC Remote Bidding System has not been tested in a 
Macintosh, OS/2, or Windows NTTM environment. Therefore, 
the FCC will not support operating systems other than Microsoft 
Windows 95 or 98. This includes any other emulated Windows 
environment.


    14. Long-Form Applications: All applicants should be aware that at 
the long-form application stage, they will be subject to the more 
extensive reporting requirements contained in the Commission's Part 1 
ownership disclosure rule.
    15. Bidder Alerts: All applicants must certify on their FCC Form 
175 applications under penalty of perjury that they are legally, 
technically, financially and otherwise qualified to hold a license, and 
not in default on any payment for Commission licenses (including down 
payments) or delinquent on any non-tax debt owed to any Federal agency. 
Prospective bidders are reminded that submission of a false 
certification to the Commission is a serious matter that may result in 
severe penalties, including monetary forfeitures, license revocations, 
exclusion from participation in future auctions, and/or criminal 
prosecution.
    16. Information about deceptive telemarketing investment schemes is 
available from the FTC at (202) 326-2222 and from the SEC at (202) 942-
7040. Complaints about specific deceptive telemarketing investment 
schemes should be directed to the FTC, the SEC, or the National Fraud 
Information Center at (800) 876-7060. Consumers who have concerns about 
specific proposals may also call the FCC Consumer Center at (888) CALL-
FCC ((888) 225-5322).

Federal Communications Commission.
Margaret Wiener,
Deputy Chief, Auctions and Industry Analysis Division, Wireless 
Telecommunications Bureau.
[FR Doc. 01-3044 Filed 2-5-01; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6712-01-U