In further evidence of the thawing relationship between
broadcasters and wireless operators, the National Association of Broadcasters
has asked the FCC to approve the T-Mobile/MetroPCS merger, according to a
source that is the first time NAB has endorsed a wireless merger.
T-Mobile is one of the wireless carriers that the NAB teamed
up with to endorsea framework for the incentive auction band plan..
In
a letter to FCC chairman Julius Genachowski, NAB president Gordon Smith
urged the commission to approve the merger, saying it was further evidence that
the free market was the route to "purported spectrum challenges."
NAB calls it just the latest in a series of wireless deals
that "will make more effective and efficient use of commercial
spectrum." NAB has argued that the marketplace, including through
secondary market deals, is addressing the alleged spectrum crunch that the FCC
is targeting through incentive auctions.
Smith praised the wireless industry for "remaking
itself in the face of an unexpected challenge," and said it suggested that
was addressing many of the concerns that drove the debate on spectrum to focus
on reclaiming it "from others."
