Phoenix Center economist George Ford released a paper...

spectrum aggregation and competition, as the commission develops rules for an incentive auction of broadcast TV spectrum. The T-Mobile paper (http://bit.ly/1aWh013) was written by American University law professor Jonathan Baker and made the case that the FCC should limit the amount any carrier can buy in a particular market. “Recently, T-Mobile (one of the intended beneficiaries of the DOJ’s policy proposal) had its economic expert, Professor Jonathan Baker, file a formal comment on our Equalizing Competition paper in the incentive auction docket at the FCC,” Ford wrote (http://bit.ly/13R8mzb). “After review, it appears that Dr. Baker levies two general criticism of our work. First, Dr. Baker claims that we ’simply assum[e] away’ issues of foreclosure value. Second, Dr. Baker contends that we argue that ‘incremental spectrum should be awarded to the largest firms.’ In both cases, we do no such thing, and for Dr. Baker to argue otherwise is a gross mischaracterization of our paper.” Ford concluded: “Where’s the beef? One cannot help but ask this question after reading Dr. Baker’s or the DOJ’s filings on the upcoming voluntary incentive auction. Excluding or limiting participation of the largest and most spectrum-hungry wireless companies is a big deal. At a minimum, such rules will significantly reduce auction proceeds.” The Phoenix Center felt compelled to respond in a substantial way to the T-Mobile filing, given the importance of the issue, said center President Larry Spiwak in an interview. Competitive Carriers Association President Steve Berry said there were problems with the Phoenix study. “We know who is paying the Phoenix Center,” Berry told us Thursday. “The Department of Justice didn’t have an outside group paying them. They were looking at how do you best distribute and value a taxpayer resource and ensure that it gets to the best, the highest number of people.” Berry said the 700 MHz auction demonstrated that if smaller carriers are active in the incentive auction, it will mean higher prices and better returns for the government. “We do not disclose our funding sources because we would prefer our work to be judged on the merits of the legal and economic analysis contained therein,” Spiwak said in an email. “That said, over the years, the Phoenix Center has received funding from a wide variety of private and public sources, including state governments, the U.S. government, and foreign governments."