Companies planning to bid on vacant broadcast spectrum must abide by government restrictions against cooperating on auction planning. A federal appeals court last week upheld the FCC's anti- collusion rules, which prohibit companies that have filed applications to participate in broadcast-spectrum auctions from discussing their bidding strategies or negotiating settlement agreements.
A host of companies challenged the rule, arguing that applicants should have a window of time to strike a settlement deal and eliminate the need for an auction. But the court said the rule is an "entirely reasonable" way to make sure the government maximizes spectrum licensing revenue.
