Nextwave- Cingular alone in bidding for airwaves
>>>>>NextWave has said it still plans to build a broadband wireless network in cities like New York, Los Angeles and Washington with other airwaves it holds. About half of the proceeds from the sale will go to pay debt owed to the FCC. <<<<<<<<<<<<<
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Reuters
Cingular alone in bidding for NextWave airwaves
Monday September 22, 3:37 pm ET
WASHINGTON, Sept 22 (Reuters) - Bankrupt NextWave Telecom Inc. (Other OTC:NXLCQ.PK - News) said on Monday it received no qualified competing bids for wireless licenses that Cingular Wireless LLC has proposed buying for $1.4 billion in cash, bringing that deal a step closer to completion.
Potential bidders had until Sept. 15 to submit offers better than the bid by Cingular, the No. 2 U.S. wireless telephone company, for the licenses that cover 34 markets. An auction was to be held on Tuesday if any were received.
"No qualified bids were submitted by the bid deadline," NextWave said in a bankruptcy court filing. "As a result, no auction is going to be held."
A federal bankruptcy court in White Plains, N.Y., which is overseeing NextWave's bankruptcy proceedings, is slated to consider whether to approve Cingular's proposal on Thursday.
Hawthorne, N.Y.-based NextWave filed for bankruptcy in 1998 after paying $500 million out of $4.7 billion it owed for scores of licenses it won at auctions held by the Federal Communications Commission (News - Websites).
If the deal is approved by the court, Cingular, a joint venture of BellSouth Corp. (NYSE:BLS - News) and SBC Communications Inc. (NYSE:SBC - News), would boost its holdings in key markets like San Francisco, Los Angeles, Boston and Chicago.
NextWave has said it still plans to build a broadband wireless network in cities like New York, Los Angeles and Washington with other airwaves it holds. About half of the proceeds from the sale will go to pay debt owed to the FCC. |
