FiberTower Counters FCC Arguments
The FCC “fundamentally” mischaracterized FiberTower’s position in its legal challenge of an agency order that held the company hadn't demonstrated that it was providing substantial service for 689 of its 24 GHz and 39 GHz licenses and the licenses should…
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be revoked, FiberTower said in a filing last month at the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit. In October, the FCC told the court it acted within its legal authority in rejecting the licenses (see 1410150093). FiberTower said it never contended “no service” could satisfy FCC build out rules. “To the contrary, despite the technical challenges inherent in the bands and the dearth of widespread customer demand for reasons outside of FiberTower’s control, the record establishes the ample service FiberTower has provided under all of its 24 and 39 GHz licenses,” FiberTower said. FiberTower said the service it offered included “building a nationwide construction platform with the systems and contracts necessary for providing transmission on demand; developing new equipment such as small-cell technologies for transmission in congested urban areas; making 100 percent of its licensed spectrum available for use on a daily basis both through its innovative ‘spectrum-in-a-box’ program and through secondary-market leasing; and -- last but not least -- constructing and operating links wherever sufficient demand existed, including on at least 42 of the licenses at issue.” Oral argument is set for Jan. 20 (see 1412030048). FiberTower filed with the court Nov. 18.