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先日終了した米国無線 700MHz 帯の競売の結果が公表され、オープンアクセスが義務づけられた C ブロックは Verizon Wireless が落札した。

■700MHz帯競売、Cブロック落札者はVerizon
http://www.itmedia.co.jp/news/articles/0803/21/news016.html

　米連邦通信委員会（FCC）のケビン・J・マーティン委員長は3月20日、無線周波数帯（700MHz帯）競売の落札者を発表した。落札額の合計は、過去最高の195億9200万ドルを記録。米Googleの参加や「オープンアクセス」の義務付けで注目された「Cブロック」は、米Verizon Wirelessが落札した。

で、この 700MHz 帯を Verizon Wireless はどのように使うのか？ dailywireless の記事を読むと、この先紆余曲折ありそうな雰囲気である。

■700MHz: Politics Wins
http://www.dailywireless.org/2008/03/21/700mhz-politics-wins/

It also means that 700 MHz will use HSDPA/LTE not Mobile WiMAX. That may not a big deal by itself, but it DOES mean there will be a forklift upgrade to LTE. New handsets and LTE infrastructure will cost consumers. If it ever happens. Plan on paying twice as much ($50 vs $25) for half the speed (500 Kbps vrs 1 Mbps) using cellular's dead-end, HSPA voice network.

Consumers got screwed. Here's my argument:

* Voice-centric, proprietary cellular networks are expensive. Data-centric networks [like WiMAX] are not.
* Some operators [like Sprint], say Mobile WiMAX delivers a 10-1 cost advantage over cellular.
* At 700 MHz, only one tenth the number of towers are required compared to 2.5 GHz.

That would indicate that a competitor (like Google) could come in and clean up. But they didn't.

Here's why:

* AT&T and Verizon already had 800 MHz infrastructure. Sprint, T-Mobile [and new entrants like Google] did not.
* Verizon is getting paid billions to implement the government's 700MHz Integrated Wireless Network for push-to-talk radios. It may act as a cross-subsidy for their 700 MHz commercial service.
* AT&T Bought Dobson for $2.8 billion last year. The third-ranked regional operator has 850MHz spectrum in rural areas while Verizon Wireless bought Rural Cellular Corp. for $2.67 billion last July. Verizon Wireless said it will also expand its wireless service coverage in rural areas.
* Both AT&T and Verizon plan on getting subsized by U.S. taxpayers using the Universal Service Fund.

一方の Google は今後どうするのか。やはりGoogle Android に注目すべきだろう。

■Google Lauds 700 Mhz as a Consumer 'Victory'
http://www.unstrung.com/document.asp?doc_id=148965

Google already has multiple wireless applications available for phones, but it's expected to get really serious about wireless software as its Android OS arrives on phones late this year and into 2009.

ケータイバックホールとケータイ端末の両方がオープンであれば、インターネット型のサービス基盤は引き続き盤石でしょう。逃げた、というのことではないんじゃないかな。