Is see your point. For the record, I owned Nextwave stock at $5, sold it at $11, so I have no financial interest, but I still follow the saga....
Michael:
I understand that you may no longer have a "direct" financial interest in Nextwave. However, you probably have a "special interest" in the outcome of the Nextwave saga?
Just ask yourself this question, and answer it honestly.
If Nextwave intended to deploy a GSM network, would your viewpoints regarding Nextwave's rights to these regulatory approvals change? Would you still be a "champion" of Nextwave's quest if they were going to deploy a GSM/GPRS/EDGE network?
This is where I believe we differ. Now, I am a great admirer of Qualcomm and it's technology. But, I would not allow the concept that Nextwave was going to deploy CDMA to change my viewpoints.
How can the FCC hold Nextwave responsible for buildouts when they:
a) Delayed issueing the Nextwave license for over 6 months, causing Nextwave to loose their initial funding."
Again, we have discussed this issue before. In Auction 4 A/B Block Auctions, it took the FCC over 90 days from the Official Close of the Auction to when the licenses were granted. And these were CASH BUYERS! Auction 5 Officially Closed on May 8th, 1996. There were many more complexities in Auction 5 since it involved "Time payments". However, companies that correctly followed the Commissions rules and did not provide false statements on their applications received their licenses on or about Sept. 20, 1996. Yet even though Nextwave's owenership statements that they finally provided to the FCC showed they were in violation of the Foreign Ownership Rules, (and therefore not even elgiable to participate in Auction 5). The FCC conveyed Nextwaves licenes in 3 Business Days, over the Christmas, New Years Holiday period. Much of the delay in conveying the liceses to Nextwave was the FCC waiting for a plan from Nextwave on how they intended to fix their foregn ownership. (In which Nextwave simply asked for 9 months to do so, which the Commission gave them 6 months) and granted their licenses. Of course, Nextwave never did fix their Foreign Ownership like they promised.
So even with the complexities that existed due to Nextwave's inability to answer the Foreign Ownership Quesitons correctly, and against PCS Devco's pleading. The FCC issued the licenses to Nextwave 90 days later than the licensee's who followed the rules. If you claim they lost their initial funding due to a 90 day delay. Then I would comment that they never had the funding to begin with. If you remember, the FCC allowed Nextwave to even begin network construction at their own risks.
Forced Nextwave to file for Bankruptcy (by refusing to stretch out a pre-agreed upon paymnet plan, somthing the C Auction winners asked for after Pocket Communications had filed for protection, and been awarded their license back at 10 cents on the original dollar making it nearly impossible to compete against.
I believe you are mistaken about some sort of pre-agreed stretched out payment plan. The FCC provided 3 modified payment options to Auction 5 winners. Even DCR/Pocket that was in Bankruptcy selected an option to preserve their rights. Nextwave instead chose to the the FCC to stick it up their arses and filed for Bankruptcy protection. And you arguement about "making it nearly impossible to compete against" falls on deaf ears. After all, Nextwave bid, what they bid, with the understanding that they would be competing against the 800 Mhz CMRS providers that paid Nothing for their licenses.
c) Pulled and reauctioned the license, leaving the ownership of the spectrum in limbo, or should I say, Courts, for over 2 years.
Nexwave did not follow the rules. They failed to make a payment election, and by doing so forefited thier licenses after the grace period by not doing so. Even DCR made a payment election, even though they were in Bankruptcy.
PCSTEL |
