As has been reported on several media outlets throughout the day, the
merger of AT&T and BellSouth was approved yesterday after
concessions made by AT&T ended the 2-2 voting stalemate at the FCC.
One of the concessions of interest in the wireless industry was the
frequency spectrum that is to be given up by AT&T in the 2.5 GHz
range that was in the control of BellSouth in the nine states where the
company offered service.
No mandate was placed on how the spectrum
should be sold, with some reports speculating it may just be sold to
another affiliate instead of an auction taking place. The other
concessions were a promise to uphold net neutrality,
and charging $10 for dial up and $19.99 for DSL internet access, with
price freezes and caps for 48 months for wholesale access to the
network to be given to competitors.
