[Federal Register Volume 70, Number 91 (Thursday, May 12, 2005)]
[Notices]
[Pages 25045-25059]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 05-9537]


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FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION

[Report No. AUC-05-60-B; DA 05-737]


Auction of Lower 700 MHz Band Licenses Scheduled for July 20, 
2005; Notice and Filing Requirements, Minimum Opening Bids, Upfront 
Payments and Other Auction Procedures

AGENCY: Federal Communications Commission.

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: This document announces the procedures and minimum opening 
bids for the upcoming auction of five licenses in the Lower 700 MHz 
Band. This document is intended to familiarize prospective bidders with 
the procedures and minimum opening bids for this auction.

DATES: Auction No. 60 is scheduled for July 20, 2005.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Auctions and Spectrum Access Division, 
WTB: For legal questions: Howard Davenport at (202) 418-0660, for 
general auction questions: Ray Knowles or Lisa Stover at (717) 338-
2888. Media Contact: Lauren Patrich at (202) 418-7944.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This is a summary of the Auction No. 60 
Procedures Public Notice released on March 22, 2005. The complete text 
of the Auction No. 60 Procedures Public Notice, including attachments, 
is available for public inspection and copying during regular business 
hours at the FCC Reference Information Center, Portals II, 445 12th 
Street, SW., Room CY-A257, Washington, DC 20554. The Auction No. 60 
Procedures Public Notice may also be purchased from the Commission's 
duplicating contractor, Best Copy and Printing, Inc. (``BCPI''), 
Portals II, 445 12th Street, SW., Room CY-B402, Washington, DC 20554, 
telephone (202) 488-5300, facsimile (202) 488-5563, or you may contact 
BCPI at their Web site: http://www.BCPIWEB.com. When ordering a 
document from BCPI, please provide the appropriate FCC document number 
for example DA 05-737 for a copy of this Public Notice. This document 
is also available on the Internet at the Commission's Web site: http://wireless.fcc.gov/auctions/60/.

I. General Information

A. Introduction

    1. The Auction No. 60 Procedures Public Notice announces the 
procedures and minimum opening bid amounts for the upcoming auction of 
licenses in the Lower 700 MHz band C block (710-716/740-746 MHz) 
scheduled for July 20, 2005 (Auction No. 60). On January 26, 2005, in 
accordance with Section 309(j)(4) of the Communications Act of 1934, as 
amended, the Wireless Telecommunications Bureau (``Bureau'') released a 
public notice seeking comment on reserve prices or minimum opening bid 
amounts and the procedures to be used in Auction No. 60. The Bureau 
received no comments in response to the Auction No. 60 Comment Public 
Notice, 70 FR 6436, (February 7, 2005).
i. Background of Proceeding
    2. On January 18, 2002, the Commission released the Lower 700 MHz 
Report and Order, 67 FR 45380 (July 9, 2002) which adopted allocation 
and service rules for the Lower 700 MHz Band. Specifically, the 
Commission reallocated the entire 48 megahertz of spectrum in the Lower 
700 MHz band to fixed and mobile services and retained the existing 
broadcast allocation for both new broadcast services and incumbent 
broadcast services during their transition to digital television 
(``DTV''). The Commission established technical criteria designed to 
protect incumbent television operations in the band during the DTV 
transition period, allowed low power television (``LPTV'') and TV 
translator stations to retain secondary status and operate in the band 
after the transition, and set forth a mechanism by which pending 
broadcast applications may be amended to provide analog or digital 
service in the core television spectrum or to provide digital service 
on TV Channels 52-58.
    3. In its service rules, the Commission divided the Lower 700 MHz 
band into three 12-megahertz blocks, with each block consisting of a 
pair of 6-megahertz segments, and two 6-megahertz blocks of contiguous, 
unpaired spectrum. The Commission decided to divide the five blocks in 
the Lower 700 MHz band plan as follows: for the two 6-megahertz blocks 
of contiguous unpaired spectrum, as well as two of the three 12-
megahertz blocks of paired spectrum,

[[Page 25046]]

the Commission determined to assign licenses in six Economic Area 
Groupings (``EAGs''); for the remaining 12 megahertz block of paired 
spectrum, the Commission determined to assign licenses in 734 
Metropolitan Statistical Areas (``MSAs'') and Rural Service Areas 
(``RSAs''). All operations in the Lower 700 MHz band are generally 
regulated under the framework of Part 27's technical, licensing, and 
operating rules. To permit both wireless services and certain new 
broadcast operations in the Lower 700 MHz band, however, the Commission 
has amended the maximum power limits in Part 27 to permit 50 kW 
effective radiated power (``ERP'') transmissions in the Lower 700 MHz 
band, subject to certain conditions. Finally, the Commission 
established competitive bidding procedures and voluntary band-clearing 
mechanisms for the Lower 700 MHz band. On June 14, 2002, the Commission 
affirmed its decisions in the Lower 700 MHz Report and Order.
    4. With respect to the MSA and RSA licenses, the Bureau notes that 
MSAs and RSAs are collectively known as Cellular Market Areas (CMAs). 
CMAs were created from the Metropolitan Statistical Areas (``MSAs'') 
defined by the Office of Management and Budget (CMA001-CMA305), the 
Gulf of Mexico (CMA306), and Rural Service Areas (``RSAs'') established 
by the FCC (CMA307-CMA734). These RSAs include parts of Puerto Rico not 
already in an MSA (CMA723-CMA729), U.S. Virgin Islands (CMA730-CMA731), 
Guam (CMA732), American Samoa (CMA733), and Northern Mariana Islands 
(CMA734). The CMA designation, rather than MSA/RSA, is used in the FCC 
Integrated Spectrum Auction System and in the Universal Licensing 
System.
ii. Licenses To Be Auctioned
    5. Auction No. 60 will offer five CMA licenses in the Lower 700 MHz 
band C block (710-716/740-746 MHz). These licenses remained unsold in 
Auction No. 49, which closed on June 13, 2003. The C block is a 12-
megahertz block consisting of a pair of 6-megahertz segments.

                                              Auction No. 60.--Lower 700 MHz Band Licenses To Be Auctioned
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                                                                                                                                               Bandwidth
             Market number                        Market name                 License number               Block          Frequencies  (MHz)     (MHz)
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CMA169................................  Mayaguez, PR..................  WZ-CMA169-C..............  C....................    710-716, 740-746          12
CMA202................................  Arecibo, PR...................  WZ-CMA202-C..............  C....................    710-716, 740-746          12
CMA723................................  Puerto Rico 1--Rincon.........  WZ-CMA723-C..............  C....................    710-716, 740-746          12
CMA727................................  Puerto Rico 5--Ceiba..........  WZ-CMA727-C..............  C....................    710-716, 740-746          12
CMA729................................  Puerto Rico 7--Culebra........  WZ-CMA729-C..............  C....................    710-716, 740-746          12
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B. Rules and Disclaimers

i. Relevant Authority
    6. Prospective applicants must familiarize themselves thoroughly 
with the Commission's rules, particularly those relating to the Lower 
700 MHz band contained in Title 47, part 27, of the Code of Federal 
Regulations, and those relating to application and auction procedures, 
contained in Title 47, part 1, of the Code of Federal Regulations. 
Prospective applicants must also be thoroughly familiar with the 
procedures, terms and conditions (collectively, ``terms'') contained in 
this Public Notice; the Auction No. 60 Comment Public Notice; and the 
Commission's decisions in proceedings regarding competitive bidding 
procedures.
    7. The terms contained in the Commission's rules, relevant orders, 
and public notices are not negotiable. The Commission may amend or 
supplement the information contained in our public notices at any time, 
and will issue public notices to convey any new or supplemental 
information to applicants. It is the responsibility of all applicants 
to remain current with all Commission rules and with all public notices 
pertaining to this auction. Copies of most Commission documents, 
including public notices, can be retrieved from the FCC Auctions 
Internet site at http://wireless.fcc.gov/auctions. Additionally, 
documents are available for public inspection and copying during 
regular business hours at the FCC's Reference Information Center. 
Documents may also be purchased from the Commission's duplicating 
contractor, Best Copy and Printing Inc.
ii. Prohibition of Collusion
    8. To ensure the competitiveness of the auction process, Sec.  
1.2105(c) of the Commission's rules prohibits applicants for any of the 
same geographic license areas from communicating with each other during 
the auction about bids, bidding strategies, or settlements unless such 
applicants have identified each other on their FCC Form 175 
applications as parties with whom they have entered into agreements 
under Sec.  1.2105(a)(2)(viii). Thus, applicants for any of the same 
geographic license areas must affirmatively avoid all discussions with 
each other that affect, or in their reasonable assessment have the 
potential to affect, bidding or bidding strategy. This prohibition 
begins at the short-form application filing deadline and ends at the 
down payment deadline after the auction. This prohibition applies to 
all applicants regardless of whether such applicants become qualified 
bidders or actually bid. For purposes of this prohibition, Sec.  
1.2105(c)(7)(i) defines applicant as including all controlling 
interests in the entity submitting an application to participate in the 
auction, as well as all holders of partnership and other ownership 
interests and any stock interest amounting to 10 percent or more of the 
entity, or outstanding stock, or outstanding voting stock of the entity 
submitting a short-form application, and all officers and directors of 
that entity.
    9. Applicants for licenses in any of the same geographic license 
areas are encouraged not to use the same individual as an authorized 
bidder. A violation of the anti-collusion rule could occur if an 
individual acts as the authorized bidder for two or more competing 
applicants, and conveys information concerning the substance of bids or 
bidding strategies between the applicants he or she is authorized to 
represent in the auction. A violation could similarly occur if the 
authorized bidders are different individuals employed by the same 
organization (e.g., law firm or consulting firm). In such a case, at a 
minimum, applicants should certify on their applications that 
precautionary steps have been taken to prevent communication between 
authorized bidders and that applicants and their bidding agents will 
comply with the anti-collusion rule. However, the Bureau cautions that 
merely filing a certifying statement as part of an application will not 
outweigh specific evidence that collusive behavior has occurred, nor 
will it preclude the

[[Page 25047]]

initiation of an investigation when warranted.
    10. The Commission's anti-collusion rule allows applicants to form 
certain agreements during the auction, provided the applicants have not 
applied for licenses covering any of the same geographic areas. In 
addition, applicants that apply to bid for all markets will be 
precluded from communicating with all other applicants until after the 
down payment deadline. However, all applicants may enter into bidding 
agreements before filing their FCC Form 175, as long as they disclose 
the existence of the agreement(s) in their Form 175. If parties agree 
in principle on all material terms prior to the short-form filing 
deadline, those parties must be identified on the short-form 
application pursuant to Sec.  1.2105(c), even if the agreement has not 
been reduced to writing. If the parties have not agreed in principle by 
the filing deadline, an applicant would not include the names of those 
parties on its application, and may not continue negotiations. By 
signing their FCC Form 175 short-form applications, applicants are 
certifying their compliance with Sec.  1.2105(c).
    11. Section 1.65 of the Commission's rules requires an applicant to 
maintain the accuracy and completeness of information furnished in its 
pending application and to notify the Commission within 30 days of any 
substantial change that may be of decisional significance to that 
application. Thus, Sec.  1.65 requires auction applicants that engage 
in communications of bids or bidding strategies that result in a 
bidding agreement, arrangement or understanding not already identified 
on their short-form applications to promptly disclose any such 
agreement, arrangement or understanding to the Commission by amending 
their pending applications. In addition, Sec.  1.2105(c) (6) requires 
all auction applicants to report prohibited discussions or disclosures 
regarding bids or bidding strategy to the Commission in writing 
immediately but in no case later than five business days after the 
communication occurs, even if the communication does not result in an 
agreement or understanding regarding bids or bidding strategy that must 
be reported under Sec.  1.65.
    12. Applicants that are 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. Any applicant found to have violated 
the anti-collusion rule may be subject to sanctions, including 
forfeiture of its upfront payment, down payment or full bid amount, and 
may be prohibited from participating in future auctions. In addition, 
applicants are reminded that they are subject to the antitrust laws, 
which are designed to prevent anticompetitive behavior in the 
marketplace. If an applicant 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.
    13. A summary listing of documents issued by the Commission and the 
Bureau addressing the application of the anti-collusion rule these 
documents are available on the Commission's anti-collusion web page.
iii. Interference Protection of Television Services
    14. Among other licensing and technical rules, new Lower 700 MHz 
band licensees must comply with the interference protection 
requirements set forth in Sec.  27.60 of the Commission's rules. 
Generally, Sec.  27.60 establishes standards for protection of co- and 
adjacent-channel analog TV and DTV facilities. Thus, for example, a new 
licensee seeking to operate on the C block (710-716/740-746 MHz) 
portion of the Lower 700 MHz band must provide co-channel protection to 
nearby TV and DTV operations on Channels 54 and 59 and provide 
adjacent-channel protection to stations on Channels 53, 55, 58, and 60. 
New Lower 700 MHz band licensees should also be aware that incumbent 
broadcasters may be permitted to make certain changes to their 
authorized facilities. Such modified facilities may be entitled to 
interference protection from new Lower 700 MHz band licensees. In 
addition, Appendix D of the Lower 700 MHz Report and Order describes 
additional adjacent-channel interference considerations that are 
designed to mitigate the possibility of base-to-base interference that 
may arise at base receive stations that are in close proximity to high 
power transmitters operating on adjacent channels. Moreover, licensees 
intending to operate a facility at a power level of greater than 1 
kilowatt must provide advance notice to the Commission and to licensees 
authorized in their area of operation. New Lower 700 MHz licensees also 
will have to comply with any additional technical requirements or 
interference protection requirements that may be adopted as a result of 
any future rulemaking proceedings.
    15. Potential bidders should recognize that the interference 
protection requirements for the Lower 700 MHz band are more stringent 
in certain respects relative to the interference standards that apply 
to the Upper 700 MHz band. These interference obligations will remain 
in force until the end of the DTV transition period at which time 
analog TV and DTV broadcasters will be required to vacate both the 
Upper and Lower 700 MHz bands.
    16. Potential bidders should be aware that a greater number of 
broadcast incumbents exist in the Lower 700 MHz band relative to the 
Upper 700 MHz band. The Commission has also observed that, although 
there is approximately the same number of analog incumbents in both the 
Upper and Lower 700 MHz bands, the Lower 700 MHz band consists of less 
spectrum and, therefore, incumbent licensees are more densely situated 
across the band. Further, there is a significantly greater number of 
DTV assignments on the eight television channels in the Lower 700 MHz 
band, including licenses, construction permits, pending applications, 
and pending allotment petitions, than exist in the Upper 700 MHz band. 
The Commission may also permit certain Channel 60-69 broadcasters to 
relocate temporarily into Channels 52-58 pursuant to a voluntary 
clearing arrangement.
    17. Negotiations with Incumbent Broadcast Licensees: The Commission 
has established a policy of facilitating voluntary clearing of the 700 
MHz bands to allow for the introduction of new wireless services and to 
promote the transition of incumbent analog television licensees to DTV 
service. Generally speaking, this policy provides that the Commission 
will consider specific regulatory requests needed to implement 
voluntary agreements between incumbent broadcasters and new licensees 
to clear the Lower 700 MHz band early, if consistent with the public 
interest. The fundamentals of the Commission's voluntary clearing 
policy for the 700 MHz bands were established in a series of decisions 
beginning with the adoption of the Upper 700 MHz First Report and Order 
in January 2000. However, in light of certain differences between the 
Upper and Lower 700 MHz bands, the Commission decided not to extend 
certain aspects of its voluntary clearing policy to the Lower 700 MHz 
band, including the presumptions that were established in the Upper 700 
MHz band for analyzing voluntary band-clearing proposals and the 
extended DTV construction period that was provided to certain single-
channel

[[Page 25048]]

broadcasters in connection with the arrangements for early clearing of 
the Upper 700 MHz band. In considering such regulatory requests, the 
Commission will consider whether grant of the request would result in 
public interest benefits, such as making new or expanded public safety 
or other wireless services available to consumers or deploying wireless 
service to rural or other underserved communities. The Commission 
intends to weigh these benefits against any likely public interest 
costs, such as the loss of any of the four stations in the designated 
market area with the largest audience share, the loss of the sole 
service licensed to the local community, the loss of a community's sole 
service on a channel reserved for noncommercial educational broadcast 
service, or a negative effect on the pace of the DTV transition in the 
market.
    18. Subsequent to the adoption by the Commission of its voluntary 
clearing policy, the Auction Reform Act of 2002 was enacted. One 
provision of this legislation restricts the Commission's authority to 
waive certain broadcast interference standards and the minimum spacing 
requirements for certain proposals to relocate Channel 52-69 analog 
operations to a Channel 2-51 DTV allotment, if such waiver ``will 
result in any degradation in or loss of service, or an increased level 
of interference to any television household except as the Commission's 
rules would otherwise expressly permit, exclusive of any waivers 
previously granted.''
    19. Finally, the Commission notes that an existing or future 
wireless licensee in the 700 MHz bands may notify in writing a digital 
low power TV or TV translator operating on the same channel or first 
adjacent channel of its intention to initiate or change wireless 
operations and the likelihood of interference from the low power TV or 
translator station within its licensed geographic service area. Upon 
receipt of such notice, the digital LPTV or TV translator licensee must 
cease operation within 120 days unless it obtains the agreement of the 
wireless licensee to continue operations.
iv. Due Diligence
    20. Applicants are reminded that there are a number of incumbent 
broadcast television licensees already licensed and operating in the 
710-716/740-746 MHz bands that will be subject to the upcoming auction. 
As discussed above in greater detail, the Commission made clear that 
geographic area licensees operating on the spectrum associated with 
Channels 52, 53, 54, 55, 56, 57, 58, 59, and 60 must comply with the 
co-channel and the adjacent channel provision of Sec.  27.60 of the 
Commission's rules. These limitations may restrict the ability of such 
geographic licensees to use certain portions of the electromagnetic 
spectrum or provide service to certain regions in their geographic 
license areas.
    21. To aid applicants, this Public Notice lists incumbent licensees 
operating in these bands. The Commission makes no representations or 
guarantees that the matters listed are the only pending matters that 
could affect spectrum availability in these services. Applicants should 
not rely solely on this list, but should carefully review the 
Commission's databases and records before formulating bidding 
strategies.

                                                          Incumbent CDBS Record Listing for DTV Channels 53-55 and 58-60 as of 3/10/05
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                                                                 Facility
             Channel                    State               City                Call sign           ID              Name                    ARN                    Status             Service
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53...............................  PR.............  ARECIBO.............  WCCV-TV.............       3001  ASOCIACION             19991101AGR............  CP....................  DT
                                                                                                            EVANGELISTICA CRISTO
                                                                                                            VIENE INC..
54...............................  PR.............  YAUCO...............  W54AQ...............      42151  ASOCIACION             198904171Q.............  LIC...................  TX
                                                                                                            EVANGELISTICA CRISTO
                                                                                                            VIENE INC..
54...............................  PR.............  ARECIBO.............  WCCV-TV.............       3001  ASOCIACION             19950719KH.............  LIC...................  TV
                                                                                                            EVANGELISTICA CRISTO
                                                                                                            VIENE INC..
55...............................  PR.............  SAN JUAN............  WIPR-TV.............      53859  PUERTO RICO PUBLIC     20000426ABF............  CP....................  DT
                                                                                                            BROADCASTING CORP..
58...............................  PR.............  CAGUAS..............  WUJA................       8156  CAGUAS EDUCATIONAL     19851107KE.............  LIC...................  TV
                                                                                                            TV, INC..
58...............................  PR.............  MAYAGUEZ............  W34CI...............      71730  WESTERN BROADCASTING   JG0601UA...............  CP....................  TX
                                                                                                            CORP. OF PUERTO RICO.
59...............................  PR.............  BAYAMON.............  WDWL................       4110  BAYAMON CHRISTIAN      20000419ABS............  CP....................  DT
                                                                                                            NETWORK.
60...............................  PR.............  SABANA GRANDE.......  W60AA...............      71726  WESTERN BROADCASTING   1432...................  LIC...................  TX
                                                                                                            CORP. OF PUERTO RICO.
60...............................  PR.............  ARECIBO.............  WMEI................      26676  HECTOR NEGRONI         19960415KE.............  CP MOD................  TV
                                                                                                            CARTAGENA.
60...............................  PR.............  ARECIBO.............  WMEI................      26676  HECTOR NEGRONI         20001220ABS............  APP...................  TV
                                                                                                            CARTAGENA.
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    22. Licensing records for the Media Bureau are contained in the 
Media Bureau's Consolidated Data Base System (CDBS) and may be 
researched on the Internet at http://www.fcc.gov/mb/. Potential bidders 
may query the database online and download a copy of their search 
results if desired. Detailed instructions on using Search for Station 
Information, Search for Ownership Report Information and Search for 
Application Information and downloading query results are available 
online by selecting the CDBS Public Access (main) button at the bottom 
of the Electronic Filing and Public Access list section. The database 
searches return either station or application data. The application 
search provides an application link that displays the complete 
electronically filed application in application format. An AL/TC search 
under the application search link permits searching for Assignment of 
License/Transfer of Control groups using the AL/TC group lead 
application.
    23. Potential bidders should direct questions regarding the search 
capabilities of CDBS to the Media Bureau help line at (202) 418-2662, 
or via e-mail at [email protected]. Applicants are solely responsible for 
identifying associated risks and for

[[Page 25049]]

investigating and evaluating the degree to which such matters may 
affect their ability to bid on, otherwise acquire, or make use of 
licenses available in Auction No. 60.
    24. Applicants should also be aware that certain pending and future 
applications (including those for modification), petitions for 
rulemaking, requests for special temporary authority (``STA''), waiver 
requests, petitions to deny, petitions for reconsideration, and 
applications for review may be pending before the Commission and relate 
to particular applicants or incumbent licensees. In addition, pending 
and future judicial proceedings may relate to particular applicants or 
incumbent licensees, or the licenses available in Auction No. 60. 
Applicants are responsible for assessing the likelihood of the various 
possible outcomes, and considering their potential impact on spectrum 
licenses available in this auction.
    25. Applicant should perform due diligence to identify and consider 
all proceedings that may affect the spectrum licenses being auctioned. 
The Commission notes note that resolution of such matters could have an 
impact on the availability of spectrum for Auction No. 60. In addition, 
although the Commission may continue to act on various pending 
applications, informal objections petitions, and other requests for 
Commission relief, some of these matters may not be resolved by the 
time of the auction.
    26. As a convenience to potential applicants, the Bureau will issue 
shortly a due diligence announcement listing proceedings that may 
affect future operations in these bands. The Commission makes no 
representations or guarantees that the matters listed in this due 
diligence announcement are the only pending matters that could affect 
spectrum availability in these services.
v. Bidder Alerts
    27. The FCC makes no representations or warranties about the use of 
this spectrum for particular services. Applicants should be aware that 
an FCC auction represents an opportunity to become an FCC licensee in 
this service, 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 and interested parties 
should perform their own due diligence before proceeding, as they would 
with any new business venture.
    28. As is the case with many business investment opportunities, 
some unscrupulous entrepreneurs may attempt to use Auction No. 60 to 
deceive and defraud unsuspecting investors. 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 regarding 
Auction No. 60 may also call the FCC Consumer Center at (888) CALL-FCC 
((888) 225-5322).
vi. National Environmental Policy Act Requirements
    29. Licensees must comply with the Commission's rules regarding the 
National Environmental Policy Act (``NEPA''). The construction of a 
wireless antenna facility is a Federal action and the licensee must 
comply with the Commission's NEPA rules for each such facility. The 
Commission's NEPA rules require, among other things, that the licensee 
consult with expert agencies having NEPA responsibilities, including 
the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the State Historic Preservation 
Office, the Army Corps of Engineers and the Federal Emergency 
Management Agency (through the local authority with jurisdiction over 
floodplains).

C. Auction Specifics

i. Auction Date
    30. The auction will begin on Wednesday, July 20, 2005, as 
announced in the Auction No. 60 Comment Public Notice, 70 FR 6436 
(February 7, 2005). The initial schedule for bidding will be announced 
by public notice at least one week before the start of the auction. 
Unless otherwise announced, bidding on all licenses will be conducted 
on each business day, and will continue until bidding has stopped on 
all licenses.
ii. Auction Title
    31. Auction No. 60--Lower 700 MHz Band C block.
iii. Bidding Methodology
    32. The bidding methodology for Auction No. 60 will be simultaneous 
multiple round bidding. The Commission will conduct this auction over 
the Internet using the FCC's Integrated Spectrum Auction system 
(``ISAS'' or ``FCC Auction System''), and telephonic bidding will be 
available as well. Qualified bidders are permitted to bid 
telephonically or electronically.
iv. Pre-Auction Dates and Deadlines

ISAS Orientation Sessions............................  March 31, 2005 and April 21, 2005.
Auction Seminar......................................  May 24, 2005.
Short-Form Application (FCC Form 175) Filing Window    May 24, 2005; 12 p.m. ET.
 Opens.
Short-Form Application (FCC Form 175) Filing Window    June 3, 2005; 6 p.m. ET.
 Deadline.
Upfront Payments (via wire transfer).................  June 30, 2005; 6 p.m. ET.
Mock Auction.........................................  July 18, 2005.
Auction Begins.......................................  July 20, 2005.
 

v. Requirements for Participation
    33. Those wishing to participate in the auction must:
     Submit a short-form application (FCC Form 175) 
electronically by 6 p.m. Eastern Time (ET), June 3, 2005.
     Submit a sufficient upfront payment and an FCC Remittance 
Advice Form (FCC Form 159) by 6 p.m. ET, June 30, 2005.
     Comply with all provisions outlined in this public notice.
vi. General Contact Information

GENERAL AUCTION INFORMATION:
    General Auction Questions..........  FCC Auctions Hotline, (888) 225-
    Seminar Registration...............   5322, Press Option 2,
                                          or direct (717) 338-2888,
                                          Hours of service: 8 a.m.-5:30
                                          p.m. ET, Monday through
                                          Friday.

[[Page 25050]]

 
AUCTION LEGAL INFORMATION: Auction       Auctions and Spectrum Access
 Rules, Policies, Regulations.            Division, (202) 418-0660.
LICENSING INFORMATION:
    Rules, Policies, Regulations.......  Mobility Division, (202) 418-
    Licensing Issues...................   0620.
    Due Diligence......................
    Incumbency Issues..................
TECHNICAL SUPPORT:
    Electronic Filing..................  FCC Auctions Technical Support
    FCC Auction System.................   Hotline, (877) 480-3201,
                                          option nine or (202) 414-1250,
                                          (202) 414-1255 (TTY), Hours of
                                          service: 8 a.m.-6 p.m. ET,
                                          Monday through Friday.
PAYMENT INFORMATION:
    Wire Transfers.....................  FCC Auctions Accounting Branch,
    Refunds............................   (202) 418-0578, (202) 418-2843
                                          (Fax).
TELEPHONIC BIDDING.....................  Will be furnished only to
                                          qualified bidders.
FCC COPY CONTRACTOR: Additional Copies   Best Copy and Printing, Inc.,
 of Commission Documents.                 445 12th Street, SW., Room CY-
                                          B402, Washington, DC 20554,
                                          (800) 378-3160, http://
                                          www.bcpiweb.com.
PRESS INFORMATION--FCC FORMS...........  Lauren Patrich (202) 418-7944,
                                          (800) 418-3676 (outside
                                          Washington, DC), (202) 418-
                                          3676 (in the Washington area)
                                          http://www.fcc.gov/formpage.html.
FCC INTERNET SITES.....................  http://www.fcc.gov.
                                         http://wireless.fcc.gov/auctions auctions.
                                         http://wireless.fcc.gov/uls.
 

II. Short-Form (FCC Form 175) Filing Requirements

    34. A party's application to participate in an FCC auction, 
referred to as a short-form application or FCC Form 175, provides 
information used in determining whether the applicant is legally, 
technically, and financially qualified to participate in Commission 
auctions for licenses or permits. In addition, for Auction No. 60, if 
an applicant claims eligibility for a bidding credit, the information 
provided will be used in determining whether the applicant is eligible 
for the claimed bidding credit. Applicants to participate in Auction 
No. 60 must file FCC Form 175 electronically by 6 p.m. ET on June 3, 
2005. Applicants bear full responsibility for submission of timely and 
complete FCC Form 175 applications. 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. Applicants should read the instructions carefully and should 
consult the rules to ensure that, in addition to the materials 
described below; all the information that is required under the 
Commission's rules is included with their FCC Form 175 applications.
    35. An entity may not submit more than one short-form application 
in a single auction. In the event that a party submits multiple FCC 
Form 175s, such additional applications will be dismissed.
    36. Applicants should further note that submission of an FCC Form 
175 application constitutes a representation by the certifying official 
that he or she is an authorized representative of the applicant, has 
read the form's instructions and certifications, and that the contents 
of the application and any attachments are true and correct. Submission 
of a false certification to the Commission may result in penalties, 
including monetary forfeitures, license forfeitures, ineligibility to 
participate in future auctions, and/or criminal prosecution.

A. Preferences for Small Businesses and Others

i. Size Standards for Bidding Credits
    37. In the Lower 700 MHz Report and Order, the Commission 
determined that three levels of bidding credits were appropriate for 
the CMA licenses in the C block. A bidding credit represents the amount 
by which a bidder's winning bids are discounted. The size of the 
bidding credit depends on the average of the aggregated annual gross 
revenues for each of the preceding three years of the bidder, its 
affiliates, its controlling interests, and the affiliates of its 
controlling interests.
    38. For Auction No. 60, bidding credits will be available to small 
businesses, very small businesses, and entrepreneurs, or consortia 
thereof, as defined in Sec.  27.702, for the Lower 700 MHz band 
licenses:
     A bidder with attributed average annual gross revenues 
that do not exceed $3 million for the preceding three years 
(``entrepreneur'') will receive a 35 percent discount on its winning 
bids.
     A bidder with attributed average annual gross revenues 
that exceed $3 million and do not exceed $15 million for the preceding 
three years (``very small business'') will receive a 25 percent 
discount on its winning bids.
     A bidder with attributed average annual gross revenues 
that exceed $15 million and do not exceed $40 million for the preceding 
three years (``small business'') will receive a 15 percent discount on 
its winning bids;
    Bidding credits are not cumulative; a qualifying applicant receives 
the 35 percent, 25 percent, or 15 percent bidding credit on its winning 
bid, but only one credit per license.
    39. Applicants should note that they will be required to provide 
information regarding revenues attributable to the applicant and 
related parties on their FCC Form 175 short-form applications to 
establish that they satisfy the eligibility requirements to qualify as 
a small business, very small business, or entrepreneur (or consortia of 
a small business, very small business, or entrepreneur) for this 
auction.
ii. Tribal Lands Bidding Credit
    40. The Commission notes that there are no federally recognized 
tribal lands within the geographic area covered by the licenses offered 
in this auction. Thus, tribal lands bidding credits will not be 
available to winning bidders in Auction No. 60.
iii. Installment Payments
    41. Installment payment plans will not be available in Auction No. 
60.

B. License Selection

    42. In Auction No. 60, applicants must select the licenses on which 
they want to bid from the ``Eligible Licenses'' list. The applicant may 
select all the licenses in the list (by using the SELECT ALL option) or 
select and add individual licenses from the list. Be advised that there 
is no opportunity to change license selection after the short-form 
filing deadline. It is critically important that you confirm your 
license selection because the FCC Auction

[[Page 25051]]

System will not accept bids on licenses that an applicant has not 
selected on its FCC Form 175.

C. Consortia and Joint Bidding Arrangements

    43. Applicants will be required to indicate on their applications 
whether they have entered into any explicit or implicit agreements, 
arrangements or understandings of any kind with any parties, other than 
those identified, regarding the amount of their bids, bidding 
strategies, or the particular licenses on which they will or will not 
bid. Applicants will also be required to identify on their short-form 
applications any parties with whom they have entered into any 
consortium arrangements, joint ventures, partnerships or other 
agreements or understandings that relate in any way to the licenses 
being auctioned, including any agreements relating to post-auction 
market structure. If an applicant has had discussions, but has not 
reached a joint bidding agreement by the short-form deadline, it would 
not include the names of parties to the discussions on its applications 
and may not continue such discussions with applicants for any of the 
same geographic license areas after the deadline.
    44. A party holding a non-controlling, attributable interest in one 
applicant will be permitted to acquire an ownership interest in, form a 
consortium with, or enter into a joint bidding arrangement with other 
applicants for licenses in the same geographic license area provided 
that (i) the attributable interest holder certifies that it has not and 
will not communicate with any party concerning the bids or bidding 
strategies of more than one of the applicants in which it holds an 
attributable interest, or with which it has formed a consortium or 
entered into a joint bidding arrangement; and (ii) the arrangements do 
not result in a change in control of any of the applicants. While the 
anti-collusion rules do not prohibit non-auction related business 
negotiations among auction applicants, applicants are reminded that 
certain discussions or exchanges could touch upon impermissible subject 
matters because they may convey pricing information and bidding 
strategies.

D. Ownership Disclosure Requirements

    45. All applicants must comply with the uniform Part 1 ownership 
disclosure standards and provide information required by Sec. Sec.  
1.2105 and 1.2112 of the Commission's rules. Specifically, in 
completing FCC Form 175, applicants will be required to fully disclose 
information on the real party or parties-in-interest and ownership 
structure of the bidding entity. The ownership disclosure standards for 
the short form are set forth in Sec.  1.2112 of the Commission's rules. 
To simplify filling out Form 175, an applicant's most current ownership 
information on file with the Commission, if in an electronic format 
compatible with Form 175, such as information submitted in an on-line 
Form 602, will automatically be entered into Form 175. Applicants are 
responsible for information submitted in Form 175 being complete and 
accurate. Accordingly, applicants should carefully review any 
information automatically entered to confirm that it is complete and 
accurate as of the deadline for filing Form 175. Applicants can update 
any information that needs to be changed directly in the Form 175.

E. Bidding Credit Revenue Disclosures

    46. Entities applying to bid as small businesses, very small 
businesses, or entrepreneurs (or consortia of small businesses, very 
small businesses, or entrepreneurs) will be required to disclose on 
their FCC Form 175 short-form applications the gross revenues for the 
preceding three years of each of the following: (1) The applicant, (2) 
its affiliates, (3) its controlling interests, and (4) the affiliates 
of its controlling interests. Certification that the average annual 
gross revenues for the preceding three years do not exceed the 
applicable limit is not sufficient. In order to comply with disclosure 
requirements for bidding credit eligibility, an applicant must provide 
separately for itself, its affiliates, its controlling interests, and 
the affiliates of its controlling interests, the gross revenues for 
each of the preceding three years. If the applicant is applying as a 
consortium of small businesses, very small businesses, or 
entrepreneurs, this information must be provided for each consortium 
member.
    47. Controlling interest standard. The Commission uses a 
``controlling interest'' standard for attributing to auction applicants 
the gross revenues of their investors and affiliates in determining 
small business eligibility for future auctions. The Commission has 
modified its rules governing the attribution of gross revenues for 
purposes of determining small business eligibility. These changes 
included exempting the gross revenues of the affiliates of a rural 
telephone cooperative's officers and directors from attribution to the 
applicant if certain specified conditions are met. The Commission also 
clarified that in calculating an applicant's gross revenues under the 
controlling interest standard, the personal net worth, including 
personal income, of its officers and directors will not be attributed 
to the applicant.
    48. Control. The term ``control'' includes both de facto and de 
jure control of the applicant. Typically, ownership of at least 50.1 
percent of an entity's voting stock evidences de jure control. De facto 
control is determined on a case-by-case basis. The following are some 
common indicia of de facto control:
     The entity constitutes or appoints more than 50 percent of 
the board of directors or management committee;
     The entity has authority to appoint, promote, demote, and 
fire senior executives that control the day-to-day activities of the 
licensee; or
     The entity plays an integral role in management decisions.
    49. A consortium of small businesses, very small businesses, or 
entrepreneurs is a ``conglomerate organization formed as a joint 
venture between or among mutually independent business firms,'' each of 
which individually must satisfy one of the definitions of small 
business, very small business, or entrepreneur in Sec. Sec.  1.2110(f), 
27.702. Thus, each consortium member must disclose its gross revenues 
along with those of its affiliates, its controlling interests, and the 
affiliates of its controlling interests.

F. Provisions Regarding Former and Current Defaulters

    50. Each applicant must indicate on its FCC Form 175 application 
under penalty of perjury whether or not the applicant, its affiliates, 
its controlling interests, and the affiliates of its controlling 
interests, as defined by Sec.  1.2110, have ever been in default on any 
Commission licenses or have ever been delinquent on any non-tax debt 
owed to any Federal agency. In addition, each applicant must certify on 
its FCC Form 175 application under penalty of perjury that the 
applicant, its affiliates, its controlling interests, and the 
affiliates of its controlling interests, as defined by Sec.  1.2110, is 
not in default on any payment for Commission licenses (including down 
payments) and that it is not delinquent on any non-tax debt owed to any 
Federal agency. Prospective applicants 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.
    51. Former defaulters--i.e., applicants, including their 
attributable interest holders, that in the past have

[[Page 25052]]

defaulted on any Commission licenses or been delinquent on any non-tax 
debt owed to any Federal agency, but that have since remedied all such 
defaults and cured all of their outstanding non-tax delinquencies--are 
eligible to bid in Auction No. 60, provided that they are otherwise 
qualified. However, as discussed infra in Sec.  III.E.3, former 
defaulters are required to pay upfront payments that are fifty percent 
more than the normal upfront payment amounts.
    52. Current defaulters--i.e., applicants, including their 
attributable interest holders, that are in default on any payment for 
Commission licenses (including down payments) or are delinquent on any 
non-tax debt owed to any Federal agency--are not eligible to bid in 
Auction No. 60.
    53. Applicants are encouraged to review the Bureau's previous 
guidance on default and delinquency disclosure requirements in the 
context of our short-form application process. Applicants are reminded 
that the Commission's Red Light Display System, which provides 
information regarding debts owed to the Commission, may not be 
determinative of an applicant's ability to comply with the default and 
delinquency disclosure requirements.

G. Other Information

    54. Applicants owned by minorities or women, as defined in Sec.  
1.2110(c)(2), may identify themselves in filling out their FCC Form 175 
short-form application regarding this status. This applicant status 
information is collected for statistical purposes only and assists the 
Commission in monitoring the participation of ``designated entities'' 
in its auctions.

H. Minor Modifications to Short-Form Applications (FCC Form 175)

    55. After the short-form filing deadline (6 p.m. ET June 3, 2005), 
applicants may make only minor changes to their applications. 
Applicants will not be permitted to make major modifications to their 
applications (e.g., change their license selections, change the 
certifying official, change control of the applicant, or change bidding 
credit eligibility). Permissible minor changes include, for example, 
deletion and addition of authorized bidders (to a maximum of three) and 
addresses and phone numbers of the applicants and their contact 
persons. Applicants must press the SUBMIT button in the FCC Auction 
System for the changes to be submitted and considered by the 
Commission. After the revised application has been submitted, a 
confirmation page will be displayed that states the submission time and 
date, along with a unique file number. In addition, applicants should 
submit a letter, briefly summarizing the changes, by electronic mail to 
the attention of Margaret Wiener, Chief, Auctions and Spectrum Access 
Division, at the following address: [email protected]. The electronic 
mail summarizing the changes must include a subject or caption 
referring to Auction No. 60 and the name of the applicant. The Bureau 
requests that parties format any attachments to electronic mail as 
Adobe[reg] Acrobat[reg] (pdf) or Microsoft[reg] Word documents.

I. Maintaining Current Information in Short-Form Applications (FCC Form 
175)

    56. Section 1.65 of the Commission's rules requires an applicant to 
maintain the accuracy and completeness of information furnished in its 
pending application and to notify the Commission within 30 days of any 
substantial change that may be of decisional significance to that 
application. Amendments reporting substantial changes of possible 
decisional significance in information contained in FCC Form 175 
applications will not be accepted and may in some instances result in 
the dismissal of the FCC Form 175 application.

III. Pre-Auction Procedures

A. ISAS Demonstrations

    57. In connection with its announcement of the release of ISAS, the 
new auction application filing and bidding system, the Bureau is 
planning to conduct several ISAS orientation sessions in which the 
software will be demonstrated to the public. These sessions were held 
on March 31 and April 21, 2005, and are also available via webcast.

B. Auction Seminar--May 24, 2005

    58. On Tuesday, May 24, 2005, the FCC will sponsor a seminar for 
parties interested in participating in Auction No. 60 at the Federal 
Communications Commission, located at 445 12th Street, SW., Washington, 
DC. The seminar will provide attendees with information about pre-
auction procedures, completing FCC Form 175, auction conduct, the FCC 
Auction System, auction rules, and the Lower 700 MHz band service 
rules. The seminar will also provide an opportunity for prospective 
bidders to ask questions of FCC staff.
    59. To register, complete the registration form and submit it by 
Friday, May 20, 2005. Registrations are accepted on a first-come, 
first-served basis. The seminar is free of charge.

C. Short-Form Application (FCC Form 175)--Due June 3, 2005

    In order to be eligible to bid in this auction, applicants must 
first submit an FCC Form 175 application. This application must be 
submitted electronically and received at the Commission no later than 6 
p.m. ET on June 3, 2005. Late applications will not be accepted. There 
is no application fee required when filing an FCC Form 175. However, to 
be eligible to bid, an applicant must submit an upfront payment.
    60. Applications may generally be filed at any time beginning at 
noon ET on May 24, 2005, until 6 p.m. ET on June 3, 2005. Applicants 
are strongly encouraged to file early and are responsible for allowing 
adequate time for filing their applications. Applicants may update or 
amend their electronic applications multiple times until the filing 
deadline on June 3, 2005.
    61. Applicants must always press the SUBMIT button on the Certify & 
Submit screen of the electronic form to successfully submit their FCC 
Form 175s or modifications. Any form that is not submitted will not be 
reviewed by the FCC. Technical support is available at (877) 480-3201 
option nine; (202) 414-1250; or (202) 414-1255 (text telephone (TTY)); 
hours of service are Monday through Friday, from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. ET. 
In order to provide better service to the public, all calls to the 
hotline are recorded.

D. Application Processing and Minor Corrections

    62. After the deadline for filing the FCC Form 175 applications has 
passed, the FCC will process all timely submitted applications to 
determine which are acceptable for filing, and subsequently will issue 
a public notice identifying: (1) Those applications accepted for 
filing; (2) those applications rejected; and (3) those applications 
which have minor defects that may be corrected, and the deadline for 
resubmitting such corrected applications.
    63. As described more fully in the Commission's rules, after the 
June 3, 2005, short-form filing deadline, applicants may make only 
minor corrections to their FCC Form 175 applications. Applicants will 
not be permitted to make major modifications to their applications 
(e.g., change their license selections, change the certifying official, 
change control of the applicant, or change bidding credit eligibility).

[[Page 25053]]

E. Upfront Payments--Due June 30, 2005

    64. In order to be eligible to bid in the auction, applicants must 
submit an upfront payment accompanied by an FCC Remittance Advice Form 
(FCC Form 159). After completing the FCC Form 175, filers will have 
access to an electronic version of the FCC Form 159 that can be printed 
and faxed to Mellon Bank in Pittsburgh, PA. All upfront payments must 
be received at Mellon Bank by 6 p.m. ET on June 30, 2005.
i. Making Auction Payments by Wire Transfer
    65. Wire transfer payments must be received by 6 p.m. ET on June 
30, 2005. To avoid untimely payments, applicants should discuss 
arrangements (including bank closing schedules) with their banker 
several days before they plan to make the wire transfer, and allow 
sufficient time for the transfer to be initiated and completed before 
the deadline.
    66. Applicants must fax a completed FCC Form 159 (Revised 2/03) to 
Mellon Bank at (412) 209-6045 at least one hour before placing the 
order for the wire transfer (but on the same business day). On the 
cover sheet of the fax, write ``Wire Transfer--Auction Payment for 
Auction Event No. 60.'' In order to meet the Commission's upfront 
payment deadline, an applicant's payment must be credited to the 
Commission's account by the deadline. Applicants are responsible for 
obtaining confirmation from their financial institution that Mellon 
Bank has timely received their upfront payment and deposited it in the 
proper account.
ii. FCC Form 159
    67. A completed FCC Remittance Advice Form (FCC Form 159, Revised 
2/03) must be faxed to Mellon Bank to accompany each upfront payment. 
Proper completion of FCC Form 159 (Revised 2/03) is critical to 
ensuring correct crediting of upfront payments. An electronic pre-
filled version of the FCC Form 159 is available after submitting the 
FCC Form 175. Payors using a pre-filled FCC Form 159 are responsible 
for ensuring that all of the information on the form, including payment 
amounts, is accurate. The FCC Form 159 can be completed electronically, 
but must be filed with Mellon Bank via facsimile.
iii. Amount of Upfront Payment
    68. In the Part 1 Order, 62 FR 13540, (March 21, 1997), the 
Commission delegated to the Bureau the authority and discretion to 
determine appropriate upfront payment(s) for each auction. In addition, 
in the Part 1 Fifth Report and Order, 65 FR 52323, (August 29, 2000), 
the Commission ordered that ``former defaulters,'' i.e., applicants 
that have ever been in default on any Commission license or have ever 
been delinquent on any non-tax debt owed to any Federal agency, be 
required to pay upfront payments 50 percent greater than non-''former 
defaulters.'' For purposes of this calculation, the ``applicant'' 
includes the applicant itself, its affiliates, its controlling 
interests, and affiliates of its controlling interests, as defined by 
Sec.  1.2110 of the Commission's rules.
    69. In the Auction No. 60 Comment Public Notice, the Commission 
proposed that the amount of the upfront payment would determine a 
bidder's initial bidding eligibility, the maximum number of bidding 
units on which a bidder may place bids. In order to bid on a license, 
otherwise qualified bidders that applied for that license on Form 175 
must have a current eligibility level that meets or exceeds the number 
of bidding units assigned to that license. At a minimum, therefore, an 
applicant's total upfront payment must be enough to establish 
eligibility to bid on at least one of the licenses applied for on Form 
175, or else the applicant will not be eligible to participate in the 
auction. An applicant does not have to make an upfront payment to cover 
all licenses for which the applicant has applied on Form 175, but 
rather to cover the maximum number of bidding units that are associated 
with licenses on which the bidder wishes to place bids and hold 
provisionally winning bids at any given time.
    70. In the Auction No. 60 Comment Public Notice, the Bureau 
proposed upfront payments on a license-by-license basis using a formula 
based on bandwidth and the license area population:

$0.005 * MHz * License Area Population with a minimum of $1,000 per 
license.

    The specific upfront payments and bidding units for each license 
are set forth in Attachment A of this Public Notice.
    71. In calculating its upfront payment amount, an applicant should 
determine the maximum number of bidding units on which it may wish to 
be active on (bid on or hold provisionally winning bids on) in any 
single round, and submit an upfront payment amount covering that number 
of bidding units. In order to make this calculation, an applicant 
should add together the upfront payments for all licenses on which it 
seeks to bid in any given round. Applicants should check their 
calculations carefully, as there is no provision for increasing a 
bidder's eligibility after the upfront payment deadline.
    72. Former defaulters should calculate their upfront payment for 
all licenses by multiplying the number of bidding units on which they 
wish to be active by 1.5. In order to calculate the number of bidding 
units to assign to former defaulters, the Commission will divide the 
upfront payment received by 1.5 and round the result up to the nearest 
bidding unit. If a former defaulter fails to submit a sufficient 
upfront payment to establish eligibility to bid on at least one of the 
licenses applied for on its Form 175, the applicant will not be 
eligible to participate in the auction.
iv. Applicant's Wire Transfer Information for Purposes of Refunds of 
Upfront Payments
    73. The Commission will use wire transfers for all Auction No. 60 
refunds. To ensure that refunds of upfront payments are processed in an 
expeditious manner, the Commission is requesting that all pertinent 
information as listed below be supplied to the FCC. Applicants can 
provide the information electronically during the initial short-form 
filing window after the form has been submitted. Wire Transfer 
Instructions can also be manually faxed to the FCC, Financial 
Operations Center, Auctions Accounting Group, ATTN: Gail Glasser, at 
(202) 418-2843. All refunds will be returned to the payer of record as 
identified on the FCC Form 159 unless the payer submits written 
authorization instructing otherwise. For additional information, please 
call Gail Glasser at (202) 418-0578.

F. Auction Registration

    74. Approximately ten days before the auction, the FCC will issue a 
public notice announcing all qualified bidders for the auction. 
Qualified bidders are those applicants whose FCC Form 175 applications 
have been accepted for filing and have timely submitted upfront 
payments sufficient to make them eligible to bid on at least one of the 
licenses for which they applied.
    75. All qualified bidders are automatically registered for the 
auction. Registration materials will be distributed prior to the 
auction by overnight mail. The mailing will be sent only to the contact 
person at the contact address listed in the FCC Form 175.
    76. Qualified bidders that do not receive this registration mailing 
will not be able to submit bids. Therefore, any qualified bidder that 
has not received this mailing by noon on Thursday, July

[[Page 25054]]

14, 2005, should contact the Auctions Hotline at (717) 338-2888. 
Receipt of this registration mailing is critical to participating in 
the auction, and each applicant is responsible for ensuring it has 
received all of the registration material.
    77. Qualified bidders should note that lost SecurID cards can be 
replaced only by appearing in person at the FCC headquarters, located 
at 445 12th St., SW., Washington, DC 20554. Only an authorized 
representative or certifying official, as designated on an applicant's 
FCC Form 175, may appear in person with two forms of identification 
(one of which must be a photo identification) in order to receive 
replacements. Qualified bidders requiring replacements must call 
technical support prior to arriving at the FCC.

G. Remote Electronic Bidding

    78. The Commission will conduct this auction over the Internet, and 
telephonic bidding will be available as well. Qualified bidders are 
permitted to bid telephonically or electronically. Each applicant 
should indicate its bidding preference--electronic or telephonic--on 
the FCC Form 175. In either case, each authorized bidder must have its 
own SecurID card, which the FCC will provide at no charge. Each 
applicant with one authorized bidder will be issued two SecurID cards, 
while applicants with two or three authorized bidders will be issued 
three cards. For security purposes, the SecurID cards, the telephonic 
bidding phone number, and the Integrated Spectrum Auctions System 
(ISAS) Bidder's Guide are only mailed to the contact person at the 
contact address listed on the FCC Form 175. Please note that each 
SecurID card is tailored to a specific auction; therefore, SecurID 
cards issued for other auctions or obtained from a source other than 
the FCC will not work for Auction No. 60.
    79. Please note that the SecurID cards can be recycled and the 
Commission encourage bidders to return the cards to the FCC. The 
Commission will provide pre-addressed envelopes that bidders may use to 
return the cards once the auction is over.

H. Mock Auction

    80. All qualified bidders will be eligible to participate in a mock 
auction on Monday, July 18, 2005. The mock auction will enable 
applicants to become familiar with the FCC Auction System prior to the 
auction. Participation by all bidders is strongly recommended. Details 
will be announced by public notice.

IV. Auction Event

    81. The first round of bidding for Auction No. 60 will begin on 
Wednesday, July 20, 2005. The initial bidding schedule will be 
announced in a public notice listing the qualified bidders, which is 
released approximately 10 days before the start of the auction.

A. Auction Structure

i. Simultaneous Multiple Round Auction
    82. In a simultaneous multiple round auction, all licenses are 
available during the entire auction, and bids are accepted on any 
license until the auction concludes. The Commission concludes that it 
is operationally feasible and appropriate to auction the Lower 700 MHz 
band licenses through a simultaneous multiple round auction. Unless 
otherwise announced, bids will be accepted on all licenses in each 
round of the auction. This approach allows bidders to take advantage of 
synergies that exist among licenses and is administratively efficient.
ii. Eligibility and Activity Rules
    83. The amount of the upfront payment submitted by a bidder 
determines initial bidding eligibility, the maximum number of bidding 
units on which a bidder may place bids. Note again that each license is 
assigned a specific number of bidding units equal to the upfront 
payment on a bidding unit per dollar basis. Bidding units for a given 
license do not change as prices rise during the auction. A bidder's 
upfront payment is not attributed to specific licenses. Rather, a 
bidder may place bids on any combination of licenses as long as the 
total number of bidding units associated with those licenses does not 
exceed its current eligibility. Eligibility cannot be increased during 
the auction; it can only remain the same or decrease. Thus, in 
calculating its upfront payment amount, an applicant must determine the 
maximum number of bidding units it may wish to bid on (or hold 
provisionally winning bids on) in any single round, and submit an 
upfront payment amount covering that total number of bidding units. The 
total upfront payment does not affect the total dollar amount a bidder 
may bid on any given license.
    84. In order to ensure that the auction closes within a reasonable 
period of time, an activity rule requires bidders to bid actively 
throughout the auction, rather than wait until late in the auction 
before participating. Bidders are required to be active on a specific 
percentage of their current bidding eligibility during each round of 
the auction.
    85. A bidder's activity level in a round is the sum of the bidding 
units associated with licenses on which the bidder is active. A bidder 
is considered active on a license in the current round if it is either 
the provisionally winning bidder at the end of the previous bidding 
round and does not withdraw the provisionally winning bid in the 
current round, or if it submits a bid in the current round (see 
``Minimum Acceptable Bid Amounts and Bid Increment Amounts'' in Section 
IV.B.3). The minimum required activity is expressed as a percentage of 
the bidder's current eligibility, and increases by stage as the auction 
progresses. Because these procedures have proven successful in 
maintaining the pace of previous auctions (as set forth under ``Auction 
Stages'' in Section IV.A.3 and ``Stage Transitions'' in Section 
IV.A.4), the Commission adopts them for Auction No. 60.
iii. Auction Stages
    86. In the Auction No. 60 Comment Public Notice, the Commission 
proposed to conduct the auction in two stages and employ an activity 
rule. The Commission further proposed that, in each round of Stage One, 
a bidder desiring to maintain its current bidding eligibility would be 
required to be active on licenses representing at least 80 percent of 
its current bidding eligibility. Finally, the Commission proposed that 
in each round of Stage Two, a bidder desiring to maintain its current 
bidding eligibility would be required to be active on at least 95 
percent of its current bidding eligibility. The Commission received no 
comments on this proposal.
    87. The Commission adopts its proposals for the activity rules and 
stages. The Bureau reserves the discretion to further alter the 
activity percentages before and/or during the auction.
    88. Stage One: During the first stage of the auction, a bidder 
desiring to maintain its current bidding eligibility will be required 
to be active on licenses representing at least 80 percent of its 
current bidding eligibility in each bidding round. Failure to maintain 
the required activity level will result in a reduction in the bidder's 
bidding eligibility in the next round of bidding (unless an activity 
rule waiver is used). During Stage One, reduced eligibility for the 
next round will be calculated by multiplying the bidder's current round 
activity (the sum of bidding units of the bidder's provisionally 
winning bids and

[[Page 25055]]

bids during the current round) by five-fourths (5/4).
    89. Stage Two: During the second stage of the auction, a bidder 
desiring to maintain its current bidding eligibility is required to be 
active on 95 percent of its current bidding eligibility. Failure to 
maintain the required activity level will result in a reduction in the 
bidder's bidding eligibility in the next round of bidding (unless an 
activity rule waiver is used). During Stage Two, reduced eligibility 
for the next round will be calculated by multiplying the bidder's 
current round activity (the sum of bidding units of the bidder's 
provisionally winning bids and bids during the current round) by 
twenty-nineteenths (20/19).

Caution: Since activity requirements increase in Stage Two, bidders 
must carefully check their activity during the bidding period of the 
first round following a stage transition to ensure that they are 
meeting the increased activity requirement. This is especially 
critical for bidders that have provisionally winning bids and do not 
plan to submit new bids. In past auctions, some bidders have 
inadvertently lost bidding eligibility or used an activity rule 
waiver because they did not re-verify their activity status at stage 
transitions. Bidders may check their activity against the required 
activity level by either logging in to the FCC Auction System or by 
accessing the ``Bidder Summaries'' on the public results page.
iv. Stage Transitions
    90. The auction will start in Stage One and will generally advance 
to the next stage (i.e., from Stage One to Stage Two) when, in each of 
three consecutive rounds of bidding, the provisionally winning bids 
have been placed on 20 percent or less of the licenses being auctioned 
(as measured in bidding units). In addition, the Bureau will retain the 
discretion to regulate the pace of the auction by announcement. This 
determination will be based on a variety of measures of bidder 
activity, including, but not limited to, the auction activity level, 
the percentages of licenses (as measured in bidding units) on which 
there are new bids, the number of new bids, and the percentage increase 
in revenue.
v. Activity Rule Waivers and Reducing Eligibility
    91. Based upon its experience in previous auctions, the Commission 
adopts our proposal that each bidder be provided three activity rule 
waivers. Bidders may use an activity rule waiver in any round during 
the course of the auction. Use of an activity rule waiver preserves the 
bidder's current bidding eligibility despite the bidder's activity in 
the current round being below the required minimum activity level. An 
activity rule waiver applies to an entire round of bidding and not to a 
particular license. Activity rule waivers can be either applied 
proactively by the bidder (known as a ``proactive waiver'') or applied 
automatically by the FCC Auction System (known as an ``automatic 
waiver'') and are principally a mechanism for auction participants to 
avoid the loss of bidding eligibility in the event that exigent 
circumstances prevent them from placing a bid in a particular round. 
The Commission is satisfied that our practice of providing three 
waivers over the course of the auction provides a sufficient number of 
waivers and flexibility to the bidders, while safeguarding the 
integrity of the auction.
    92. The FCC Auction System assumes that bidders with insufficient 
activity would prefer to apply an activity rule waiver (if available) 
rather than lose bidding eligibility. Therefore, the system will 
automatically apply a waiver at the end of any round where a bidder's 
activity level is below the minimum required unless: (1) There are no 
activity rule waivers available; or (2) the bidder overrides the 
automatic application of a waiver by reducing eligibility, thereby 
meeting the minimum requirements. If a bidder has no waivers remaining 
and does not satisfy the required activity level, the eligibility will 
be permanently reduced, possibly eliminating the bidder from further 
bidding in the auction.
    93. A bidder with insufficient activity that wants to reduce its 
bidding eligibility rather than use an activity rule waiver must 
affirmatively override the automatic waiver mechanism during the 
bidding round by using the ``reduce eligibility'' function in the FCC 
Auction System. In this case, the bidder's eligibility is permanently 
reduced to bring the bidder into compliance with the activity rules as 
described in ``Auction Stages'' (see Section IV.A.3). Once eligibility 
has been reduced, a bidder will not be permitted to regain its lost 
bidding eligibility.
    94. Finally, a bidder may apply an activity rule waiver proactively 
as a means to keep the auction open without placing a bid. If a bidder 
proactively applies an activity waiver (using the ``apply waiver'' 
function in the FCC Auction System) during a bidding round in which no 
bids or withdrawals are submitted, the auction will remain open and the 
bidder's eligibility will be preserved. However, an automatic waiver 
applied by the FCC Auction System in a round in which there are no new 
bids or withdrawals will not keep the auction open. Note: Applying a 
waiver is irreversible; once a proactive waiver is submitted that 
waiver cannot be unsubmitted, even if the round has not yet closed.
vi. Auction Stopping Rules
    95. For Auction No. 60, the Bureau proposed to employ a 
simultaneous stopping rule approach. The Bureau also sought comment on 
a modified version of the simultaneous stopping rule. The modified 
version of the stopping rule would close the auction for all licenses 
after the first round in which no bidder applies a waiver, places a 
withdrawal, or submits any new bids on any license on which it is not 
the provisionally winning bidder. Thus, absent any other bidding 
activity, a bidder placing a new bid on a license for which it is the 
provisionally winning bidder would not keep the auction open under this 
modified stopping rule.
    96. The Bureau further proposed retaining the discretion to keep 
the auction open even if no new bids or proactive waivers are submitted 
and no previous provisionally winning bids are withdrawn in a round. In 
this event, the effect will be the same as if a bidder had applied a 
waiver. Thus, the activity rule will apply as usual, and a bidder with 
insufficient activity will either use an activity rule waiver (if it 
has any left) or lose bidding eligibility.
    97. In addition, the Bureau proposed that it reserves the right to 
declare that the auction will end after a specified number of 
additional rounds (``special stopping rule''). If the Bureau invokes 
this special stopping rule, it will accept bids in the specified final 
round(s) and the auction will close.
    98. The Bureau proposed to exercise these options only in 
circumstances such as where the auction is proceeding very slowly, 
where there is minimal overall bidding activity or where it appears 
likely that the auction will not close within a reasonable period of 
time. Before exercising these options, the Bureau is likely to attempt 
to increase the pace of the auction by, for example, increasing the 
number of bidding rounds per day, and/or increasing the amount of the 
minimum bid increments for the limited number of licenses where there 
is still a high level of bidding activity.
    99. The Bureau adopts the above proposals. Auction No. 60 will 
begin under the simultaneous stopping rule approach, and the Bureau 
will retain the discretion to invoke the other versions of the stopping 
rule. The Bureau believes that these stopping rules are most 
appropriate for Auction No. 60, because its experience in prior 
auctions demonstrates that the auction stopping

[[Page 25056]]

rules balance the interests of administrative efficiency and maximum 
bidder participation.
vii. Auction Delay, Suspension, or Cancellation
    100. The Bureau adopts its proposed auction cancellation rules. By 
public notice or by announcement during the auction, the Bureau may 
delay, suspend, or cancel the auction in the event of natural disaster, 
technical obstacle, evidence of an auction security breach, unlawful 
bidding activity, administrative or weather necessity, or for any other 
reason that affects the fair and competitive conduct of competitive 
bidding. In such cases, the Bureau, in its sole discretion, may elect 
to resume the auction starting from the beginning of the current round, 
resume the auction starting from some previous round, or cancel the 
auction in its entirety. Network interruption may cause the Bureau to 
delay or suspend the auction. The Bureau emphasizes that exercise of 
this authority is solely within the discretion of the Bureau, and its 
use is not intended to be a substitute for situations in which bidders 
may wish to apply their activity rule waivers.

B. Bidding Procedures

i. Round Structure
    101. The initial schedule of bidding rounds will be announced in 
the public notice listing the qualified bidders, which is released 
approximately 10 days before the start of the auction. Each bidding 
round is followed by the release of round results. Multiple bidding 
rounds may be conducted in a given day. Details regarding round results 
formats and locations will also be included in the qualified bidders 
public notice.
    102. The FCC has discretion to change the bidding schedule in order 
to foster an auction pace that reasonably balances speed with the 
bidders' need to study round results and adjust their bidding 
strategies. The Bureau may increase or decrease the amount of time for 
the bidding rounds and review periods, or the number of rounds per day, 
depending upon the bidding activity level and other factors.
ii. Reserve Price or Minimum Opening Bid
    103. Section 309(j) of the Communications Act of 1934, as amended, 
calls upon the Commission to prescribe methods by which a reasonable 
reserve price will be required or a minimum opening bid established 
when applications for FCC licenses are subject to auction (i.e., 
because they are mutually exclusive), unless the Commission determines 
that a reserve price or minimum opening bid is not in the public 
interest. Consistent with this mandate, the Commission directed the 
Bureau to seek comment on the use of a minimum opening bid and/or 
reserve price prior to the start of each auction. Among other factors, 
the Bureau must consider the amount of spectrum being auctioned, levels 
of incumbency, the availability of technology to provide service, the 
size of the geographic service areas, the extent of interference with 
other spectrum bands, and any other relevant factors that could have an 
impact on the spectrum being auctioned. The Commission concluded that 
the Bureau should have the discretion to employ either or both of these 
mechanisms for future auctions.
    104. In the Auction No. 60 Comment Public Notice, the Bureau 
proposed to establish minimum opening bids for Auction No. 60 and to 
retain discretion to lower the minimum opening bids. Specifically, for 
Auction No. 60, the Bureau proposed the following license-by-license 
basis using a formula based on bandwidth and license area population:

$0.0075 * MHz * License Area Population with a minimum of $1,000 per 
license.

    105. In the alternative, the Bureau sought comment on whether, 
consistent with the Sec.  309(j), the public interest would be served 
by having no minimum opening bid or reserve price.
    106. The Bureau adopts its proposal. The minimum opening bid 
amounts the Commission adopts for Auction No. 60 are reducible at the 
discretion of the Bureau. The Commission emphasize, however, that such 
discretion will be exercised, if at all, sparingly and early in the 
auction, i.e., before bidders lose all waivers and begin to lose 
substantial eligibility. During the course of the auction, the Bureau 
will not entertain requests to reduce the minimum opening bid amount on 
specific licenses.
    107. The specific minimum opening bid amounts for each license 
available in Auction No. 60 are set forth in Attachment A of the 
Auction No. 60 Procedures Public Notice.
iii. Minimum Acceptable Bid Amounts and Bid Increment Amounts
    108. In the Auction No. 60 Comment Public Notice, the Bureau 
proposed to use a minimum acceptable bid increment of 10 percent. This 
means that the minimum acceptable bid amount for a license will be 
approximately 10 percent greater than the provisionally winning bid 
amount for the license. The minimum acceptable bid amount will be 
calculated by multiplying the provisionally winning bid amount times 
one plus the minimum acceptable bid percentage--e.g., if the minimum 
acceptable bid percentage is 10 percent, the minimum acceptable bid 
amount calculation is (provisionally winning bid amount) * (1 + 0.10), 
rounded or (provisionally winning bid amount) * (1.10), rounded. The 
Bureau will round the result using our standard rounding procedures. 
The Bureau further proposed to retain the discretion to change the 
minimum acceptable bid amounts and bid increments amounts if it 
determines that circumstances so dictate. The Bureau received no 
comment on this issue. The auction will begin with a minimum acceptable 
bid percentage of 10%.
    109. In each round, each eligible bidder will be able to place a 
bid on a particular license for which it applied in any of nine 
different amounts. The FCC Auction System will list the nine acceptable 
bid amounts for each license. Until a bid has been placed on a license, 
the minimum acceptable bid amount for that license will be equal to its 
minimum opening bid amount.
    110. The nine acceptable bid amounts for each license consist of 
the minimum acceptable bid amount and eight other bid amounts based on 
the bid increment percentage. The first additional acceptable bid 
amount, above the minimum acceptable bid amount, equals the minimum 
acceptable bid amount times one plus the bid increment percentage, 
rounded--e.g., if the bid increment percentage is 10 percent, then the 
next bid amount will equal (minimum acceptable bid amount) * 1.10, 
rounded, the second additional acceptable bid amount equals the minimum 
acceptable bid amount times one plus two times the bid increment 
percentage, rounded, or (minimum acceptable bid amount) * 1.20, 
rounded; the third additional acceptable bid amount equals the minimum 
acceptable bid amount times one plus three times the bid increment 
percentage, rounded, or (minimum acceptable bid amount) * 1.30, 
rounded, etc. The Bureau will begin the auction with a bid increment 
percentage of 10%. Note that the bid increment percentage need not be 
the same as the minimum acceptable bid percentage.
    111. In the case of a license for which the provisionally winning 
bid amount has been withdrawn, the minimum acceptable bid amount will 
equal the amount of the second highest bid amount received for the 
license. The

[[Page 25057]]

additional bid amounts above the minimum acceptable bid amount are 
calculated using the bid increment percentage as described in the 
previous paragraph.
    112. The Bureau retains the discretion to change the minimum 
acceptable bid amounts, the minimum acceptable bid percentage, and the 
bid increment percentage if it determines that circumstances so 
dictate. The Bureau will do so by announcement in the FCC Auction 
System. The Bureau may also use its discretion to adjust the minimum 
bid increment amount without prior notice if circumstances warrant.
iv. Provisionally Winning Bids
    113. At the end of each bidding round, a provisionally winning bid 
amount will be determined based on the highest bid amount received for 
each license. A high bid from a previous round is referred to as a 
``provisionally winning bid.'' A ``provisionally winning bid'' will 
remain the provisionally winning bid until there is a higher bid on the 
same license at the close of a subsequent round. Bidders are reminded 
that provisionally winning bids are counted as activity for purposes of 
the activity rule.
    114. In the Auction No. 60 Comment Public Notice, the Bureau 
proposed to use a random number generator to select a provisionally 
winning bid in the event of identical high bid amounts being submitted 
on a license in a given round (i.e., tied bids). No comments were 
received on this proposal. Therefore, the Bureau adopts its proposal. A 
Sybase[reg] SQL pseudo-random number generator based on the L'Ecuyer 
algorithms will be used to assign a random number to each bid. The tied 
bid having the highest random number will become the provisionally 
winning bid. Eligible bidders, including the provisionally winning 
bidder, will be able to submit a higher bid in a subsequent round. If 
no bidder submits a higher bid in subsequent rounds, the provisionally 
winning bid from the previous round will win the license, unless that 
provisionally winning bid was withdrawn. If any bids are received on 
the license in a subsequent round, the provisionally winning bid will 
once again be determined based on the highest bid amount received for 
the license.
v. Bidding
    115. During a round, a bidder may submit bids for as many licenses 
as it wishes (subject to its eligibility), withdraw provisionally 
winning bids from previous bidding rounds, remove bids placed in the 
same bidding round, or permanently reduce eligibility. Bidders also 
have the option of making multiple submissions and withdrawals in each 
round. If a bidder submits multiple bids for a single license in the 
same round, the system takes the last bid entered as that bidder's bid 
for the round. Bidders should note that the bidding units associated 
with licenses for which the bidder has removed or withdrawn its bid do 
not count towards the bidder's activity at the close of the round.
    116. Please note that all bidding will take place remotely either 
through the FCC Auction System or by telephonic bidding. (Telephonic 
bid assistants are required to use a script when entering bids placed 
by telephone. Telephonic bidders are therefore reminded to allow 
sufficient time to bid by placing their calls well in advance of the 
close of a round. Normally, five to ten minutes are necessary to 
complete a telephonic bid submission). There will be no on-site bidding 
during Auction No. 60.
    117. A bidder's ability to bid on specific licenses in the first 
round of the auction is determined by two factors: (1) The licenses 
applied for on FCC Form 175 and (2) the upfront payment amount 
deposited. The bid submission screens will allow bidders to submit bids 
on only those licenses for which the bidder applied on its FCC Form 
175.
    118. In order to access the bidding function of the FCC Auction 
System, bidders must be logged in during the bidding round using the 
password generated by the SecurID card and a personal identification 
number (PIN) created by the bidder. Bidders are strongly encouraged to 
print a ``round summary'' for each round after they have completed all 
of their activity for that round.
    119. In each round, eligible bidders will be able to place bids on 
a given license in any of nine different amounts. For each license, the 
FCC Auction System interface will list the nine acceptable bid amounts 
in a drop-down box. Bidders may use the drop-down box to select from 
among the nine bid amounts. The FCC Auction System also includes an 
``upload'' function that allows bidders to upload text files containing 
bid information.
    120. Until a bid has been placed on a license, the minimum 
acceptable bid amount for that license will be equal to its minimum 
opening bid amount. Once there is a provisionally winning bid on a 
license, the FCC Auction System will calculate a minimum acceptable bid 
amount for that license for the following round, as described in 
Section IV.B.3.
    121. Finally, bidders are cautioned to select their bid amounts 
carefully because, as explained in the following section, bidders that 
withdraw a provisionally winning bid from a previous round, even if the 
bid was mistakenly or erroneously made, are subject to bid withdrawal 
payments.
vi. Bid Removal and Bid Withdrawal
    122. In the Auction No. 60 Comment Public Notice, the Commission 
proposed bid removal and bid withdrawal procedures. With respect to bid 
withdrawals, the Commission proposed limiting each bidder to 
withdrawals in no more than one round during the course of the auction. 
The round in which withdrawals are used would be at the bidder's 
discretion. The Commission received no comments on this issue.
    123. Procedures. Before the close of a bidding round, a bidder has 
the option of removing any bids placed in that round. By using the 
``remove bids'' function in the FCC Auction System, a bidder may 
effectively ``unsubmit'' any bid placed within that round. A bidder 
removing a bid placed in the same round is not subject to withdrawal 
payments. Removing a bid will affect a bidder's activity for the round 
in which it is removed, i.e., a bid that is removed does not count 
toward bidding activity. These procedures will enhance bidder 
flexibility during the auction, and therefore the Commission adopts 
them for Auction No. 60.
    124. Once a round closes, a bidder may no longer remove a bid. 
However, in later rounds, a bidder may withdraw provisionally winning 
bids from previous rounds using the ``withdraw bids'' function in the 
FCC Auction System (assuming that the bidder has not reached its 
withdrawal limit). A provisionally winning bidder that withdraws its 
provisionally winning bid from a previous round during the auction is 
subject to the bid withdrawal payments specified in 47 CFR 1.2104(g). 
Note: Once a withdrawal is submitted during a round, that withdrawal 
cannot be unsubmitted.
    125. In previous auctions, the Bureau has detected bidder conduct 
that, arguably, may have constituted strategic bidding through the use 
of bid withdrawals. While the Commission continues to recognize the 
important role that bid withdrawals play in an auction, i.e., reducing 
risk associated with efforts to secure various licenses in combination, 
the Commission conclude that, for Auction No. 60, adoption of a limit 
on the use of withdrawals to one round per bidder is appropriate. By 
doing so the Commission believes the Commission strikes a reasonable 
compromise that will allow bidders to

[[Page 25058]]

use withdrawals. Our decision on this issue is based upon our 
experience in prior auctions, particularly the PCS D, E and F block and 
800 MHz SMR auctions, and is in no way a reflection of our view 
regarding the likelihood of any speculation or ``gaming'' in this 
auction.
    126. The Bureau will therefore limit the number of rounds in which 
bidders may place withdrawals to one round. The round will be at the 
bidder's discretion and there will be no limit on the number of bids 
that may be withdrawn in the round. Withdrawals during the auction will 
be subject to the bid withdrawal payments specified in 47 CFR 
1.2104(g). Bidders should note that abuse of the Commission's bid 
withdrawal procedures could result in the denial of the ability to bid 
on a market.
    127. If a provisionally winning bid is withdrawn, the minimum 
acceptable bid amount will equal the amount of the second highest bid 
received for the license, which may be less than, or in the case of 
tied bids, equal to, the amount of the withdrawn bid. To set the 
additional bid amounts, the second highest bid amount also will be used 
in place of the provisionally winning bid in the formula used to 
calculate bid increment amounts. The Commission will serve as a ``place 
holder'' provisionally winning bidder on the license until a new bid is 
submitted on that license.
    128. Calculation. Generally, the Commission imposes payments on 
bidders that withdraw high bids during the course of an auction. If a 
bidder withdraws its bid and there is no higher bid in the same or 
subsequent auction(s), the bidder that withdrew its bid is responsible 
for the difference between its withdrawn bid and the provisionally 
winning bid in the same or subsequent auction(s). In the case of 
multiple bid withdrawals on a single license, within the same or 
subsequent auctions(s), the payment for each bid withdrawal will be 
calculated based on the sequence of bid withdrawals and the amounts 
withdrawn. No withdrawal payment will be assessed for a withdrawn bid 
if either the subsequent winning bid or any of the intervening 
subsequent withdrawn bids, in either the same or subsequent 
auctions(s), equals or exceeds that withdrawn bid. Thus, a bidder that 
withdraws a bid will not be responsible for any withdrawal payments if 
there is a subsequent higher bid in the same or subsequent auction(s). 
This policy allows bidders most efficiently to allocate their resources 
as well as to evaluate their bidding strategies and business plans 
during an auction while, at the same time, maintaining the integrity of 
the auction process. The Bureau retains the discretion to scrutinize 
multiple bid withdrawals on a single license for evidence of anti-
competitive strategic behavior and take appropriate action when deemed 
necessary.
    129. Section 1.2104(g)(1) of the rules sets forth the payment 
obligations of a bidder that withdraws a high bid on a license during 
the course of an auction, and provides for the assessment of interim 
bid withdrawal payments. As amended, Sec.  1.2104(g)(1) provides that 
in instances in which bids have been withdrawn on a license that is not 
won in the same auction, the Commission will assess an interim 
withdrawal payment equal to 3 percent of the amount of the withdrawn 
bids. The 3 percent interim payment will be applied toward any final 
bid withdrawal payment that will be assessed after subsequent auction 
of the license. Assessing an interim bid withdrawal payment ensures 
that the Commission receives a minimal withdrawal payment pending 
assessment of any final withdrawal payment. Section 1.2104(g) provides 
specific examples showing application of the bid withdrawal payment 
rule.
vii. Round Results
    130. Bids placed during a round will not be made public until the 
conclusion of that bidding period. After a round closes, the Bureau 
will compile reports of all bids placed, bids withdrawn, current 
provisionally winning bids, new minimum acceptable bid amounts, and 
bidder eligibility status (bidding eligibility and activity rule 
waivers), and post the reports for public access. Reports reflecting 
bidders' identities for Auction No. 60 will be available before and 
during the auction. Thus, bidders will know in advance of this auction 
the identities of the bidders against which they are bidding.
viii. Auction Announcements
    131. The FCC will use auction announcements to announce items such 
as schedule changes and stage transitions. All FCC auction 
announcements will be available by clicking a link in the FCC Auction 
System.
ix. Maintaining the Accuracy of FCC Form 175 Information
    132. As noted in Section II.H., after the short-form filing 
deadline, applicants may make only minor changes to their FCC Form 175 
applications, for example, deletion and addition of authorized bidders 
(to a maximum of three). Applicants must press the SUBMIT button in the 
FCC Auction System for the changes to be submitted and considered by 
the Commission. In addition, applicants should submit a letter, briefly 
summarizing the changes, by electronic mail to the attention of 
Margaret Wiener, Chief, Auctions and Spectrum Access Division, at the 
following address: [email protected]. The electronic mail summarizing 
the changes must include a subject or caption referring to Auction No. 
60 and the name of the applicant. The Bureau requests that parties 
format any attachments to electronic mail as Adobe[reg] Acrobat[reg] 
(pdf) or Microsoft[reg] Word documents.

V. Post-Auction Procedures

A. Down Payments and Withdrawn Bid Payments

    133. After bidding has ended, the Commission will issue a public 
notice declaring the auction closed and identifying winning bidders, 
down payments, final payments, and any withdrawn bid payments due.
    134. Within ten business days after release of the auction closing 
notice, each winning bidder must submit sufficient funds (in addition 
to its upfront payment) to bring its total amount of money on deposit 
with the Commission for Auction No. 60 to 20 percent of the net amount 
of its winning bids (gross bids less any applicable small business, 
very small business, or entrepreneur bidding credits). In addition, by 
the same deadline, all bidders must pay any bid withdrawal payments due 
under 47 CFR 1.2104(g), as discussed in ``Bid Removal and Bid 
Withdrawal,'' Section IV.B.6. (Upfront payments are applied first to 
satisfy any withdrawn bid liability, before being applied toward down 
payments.)

B. Final Payments

    135. Each winning bidder will be required to submit the balance of 
the net amount of its winning bids within 10 business days after the 
deadline for submitting down payments.

C. Long-Form Application (FCC Form 601)

    136. Within ten business days after release of the auction closing 
notice, winning bidders must electronically submit a properly completed 
long-form application (FCC Form 601) for each license won through 
Auction No. 60. Winning bidders that are small businesses, very small 
businesses, or entrepreneurs must demonstrate their eligibility for 
small business, very small

[[Page 25059]]

business, or entrepreneur bidding credits. See 47 CFR 1.2112(b). 
Further filing instructions will be provided to auction winners at the 
close of the auction.

D. Ownership Disclosure Information Report (FCC Form 602)

    137. At the time it submits its long-form application (FCC Form 
601), each winning bidder also must comply with the ownership reporting 
requirements as set forth in 47 CFR 1.913, 1.919, and 1.2112. An 
ownership disclosure record was automatically created in the Universal 
Licensing System (ULS) for any applicant that submitted an FCC Form 
175. However, winning bidders will be required to review and confirm 
that it is complete and accurate as of the date of filing Form 601. 
Further instructions will be provided to auction winning bidders at the 
close of the auction.

E. Default and Disqualification

    138. Any high bidder that defaults or is disqualified after the 
close of the auction (i.e., fails to remit the required down payment 
within the prescribed period of time, fails to submit a timely long-
form application, fails to make full payment, or is otherwise 
disqualified) will be subject to the payments described in 47 CFR 
1.2104(g)(2). In such event the Commission may re-auction the license 
or offer it to the next highest bidder (in descending order) at its 
final bid. In addition, if a default or disqualification involves gross 
misconduct, misrepresentation, or bad faith by an applicant, the 
Commission may declare the applicant and its principals ineligible to 
bid in future auctions, and may take any other action that it deems 
necessary, including institution of proceedings to revoke any existing 
licenses held by the applicant.

F. Refund of Remaining Upfront Payment Balance

    139. All applicants that submit upfront payments but are not 
winning bidders for a license in Auction No. 60 may be entitled to a 
refund of their remaining upfront payment balance after the conclusion 
of the auction. No refund will be made unless there are excess funds on 
deposit from the applicant after any applicable bid withdrawal payments 
have been paid. All refunds will be returned to the payer of record, as 
identified on the FCC Form 159, unless the payer submits written 
authorization instructing otherwise.
    140. Bidders that drop out of the auction completely may be 
eligible for a refund of their upfront payments before the close of the 
auction. Qualified bidders that have exhausted all of their activity 
rule waivers, have no remaining bidding eligibility, and have not 
withdrawn a provisionally winning bid during the auction must submit a 
written refund request. If you have completed the refund instructions 
electronically, then only a written request for the refund is 
necessary. If not, the request must also include wire transfer 
instructions, Taxpayer Identification Number (TIN) and FCC Registration 
Number (FRN). Send refund requests to: Federal Communications 
Commission, Financial Operations Center, Auctions Accounting Group, 
Attn: Gail Glasser, 445 12th Street, SW., Room 1-C864, Washington, DC 
20554.
    141. Bidders are encouraged to file their refund information 
electronically using the Refund Information icon in the FCC Form 175, 
but bidders can also fax their information to the Auctions Accounting 
Group at (202) 418-2843. Once the information has been approved, a 
refund will be sent to the party identified in the refund information.

    Note: Refund processing generally takes up to two weeks to 
complete. Bidders with questions about refunds should contact Gail 
Glasser at (202) 418-0578.


Federal Communications Commission.
Gary D. Michaels,
Deputy Chief, Auctions and Spectrum Access Division, WTB.
[FR Doc. 05-9537 Filed 5-11-05; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6712-01-P