Verizon Wireless sues US FCC for deposit back
biz.yahoo.com
(UPDATE: Adds details, recasts)
By Jeremy Pelofsky
WASHINGTON, Feb 5 (Reuters) - Verizon Wireless on Tuesday sued in federal court to force the
government to return $1.7 billion that the mobile telephone carrier deposited as part of a now-defunct
sale of wireless licenses that are held by NextWave Telecom Inc.
The biggest U.S. mobile telephone company asked the U.S. Court of Appeals
for the District of Columbia to enforce a decision last June that essentially
nullified the Federal Communications Commission's January 2001 sale of the
NextWave licenses to Verizon and other carriers.
The FCC tried to repossess the licenses from NextWave because it failed to pay
for them on time, but in June the appeals court ruled taking them back violated
bankruptcy law and ordered the licenses be turned over.
However, the agency had already tried to resell the licenses to carriers like
Verizon and partners of AT&T Wireless Services Inc. (NYSE:AWE - news) and
Cingular Wireless (NYSE:BLS - news)(NYSE:SBC - news) for almost $16 billion
and had $3.1 billion on deposit.
The FCC has asked the Supreme Court to review the appeals court decision and
in the meantime has held onto the down payments from 13 carriers.
``The FCC's actions -- insisting that Verizon Wireless remain bound by the auction, delivering nothing in return, banking Verizon Wireless' deposit money without interest, while giving the licenses away to an earlier auction bidder -- are unlawful,'' Verizon Wireless chief executive Denny Strigl said.
Verizon, a joint venture of Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ - news) and Britain's Vodafone Group Plc (quote from Yahoo! UK & Ireland: VOD.L), has said it has lost $80 million in interest as a result of the delay in returning the down payment, money the carrier could use to expand and improve services.
A spokesman for the FCC declined to comment.
The FCC tried to settle the dispute but that collapsed when Congress failed to pass legislation to authorize the deal last year.
The FCC was poised to return most of the down payments, but sources familiar with the situation have said the agency is now likely to wait until the Supreme Court decides whether to hear the FCC's appeal, a decision that is probably several weeks away.
On Friday, NextWave said the Supreme Court should not hear the case because the appeals court ruling properly interpreted bankruptcy law, the decision did not conflict with other decisions and the FCC is not likely to face the situation again.
A spokesman for AT&T Wireless' partner in the failed FCC auction, Alaska Native Wireless, declined to comment on the suit and whether it would join it. An official for Cingular's partner, Salmon PCS, did not return a call seeking comment.
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Excerpt from another story: Verizon Wireless seeks to force FCC return deposit
biz.yahoo.com
``The court should direct the commission both to return in full the down
payments that Verizon Wireless made for the unlawfully canceled NextWave
licenses and to refrain from taking any action to enforce against Verizon
Wireless any obligations that rest on an auction that this court has already
declared was contrary to law,'' Verizon Wireless said. |
