Verizon and AT&T dominate 700MHz auction

Exactly as I predicted* in December, Verizon and AT&T have come out on top in the much-discussed 700MHz wireless spectrum auction, a newly available cell phone frequency which could open the doors for faster cellular devices with better range and more interesting services. What these two will actually do next will be a matter of debate for some months, and probably years, to come.

The big winner is Verizon, which won the national "C" block of the spectrum, the most-prized portion of the airwaves which are currently being used by television broadcasters until early 2009. AT&T won a large block of regional "B" class licenses, which would give it nearly-national coverage if it builds a network in this space. Another company called Frontier Wireless was the major winner of the "E" block, another small chunk that should give it an almost-national presence. Bits and pieces of spectrum also went to a variety of smaller service providers, primarily those specializing in certain regions.

Winning absolutely nothing: Google, which made a big to-do about ensuring access was open to other devices no matter who ended up winning the auction. That request, at least, ended up being largely put into the auction rules, even though Google didn't win.

The bottom line for you: No matter what happens next, it's pretty much going to be business as usual as the two telco giants square off again on the national stage. Hopes that some young upstart like Google or even Apple might hop into this business and change the game as we know it will have to be sadly set aside. Your high-tech Googlephone with free, ad-supported service? Sorry, not gonna happen.

Other than that, there's not much for consumers to worry about on this issue for now. Stay tuned for more news... which I figure we'll get somewhere around 2010.

(*Full disclosure: On the other hand, I also predicted the HD DVD/Blu-ray war would still be raging come Christmastime.)