Auction 95: Lower And Upper Paging Bands

4,902 lower paging bands licenses will be offered in 174 of the 175 Economic Areas (EAs). 1,003 upper paging bands licenses will be offered in each of the 51 Major Economic Areas (MEAs). 5,905 licenses total

Spectrum:

35 MHz lower paging band (unpaired): 2,339 licenses
43 MHz lower paging band (unpaired): 860 licenses
152 and 158 MHz lower paging bands (unpaired): 232 licenses
152 and 158 MHz lower paging bands (paired): 531 licenses
454 and 459 MHz lower paging bands (paired): 940 licenses
929 MHz upper paging band (unpaired): 460 licenses
931 MHz upper paging band (unpaired): 543 licenses

Bandwidth:

35 MHz licenses: 20 kHz per license
43 MHz licenses: 20 kHz per license
152 and 158 MHz unpaired licenses: 20 kHz per license
152 and 158 MHz paired licenses: 40 kHz per license*
454 and 459 MHz paired licenses: 40 kHz per license*
929 MHz licenses: 20 kHz per license
931 MHz licenses: 20 kHz per license
*These licenses are paired channels of 20 kHz each.

Winning Bidders:

33 Bidders won 3104 Licenses

Rounds:

Qualified Bidders:

Licenses Won:

3104

Licenses Held by FCC:

2801

Total Licenses:

5905

Net Bids:

$1,659,074

Gross Bids:

$2,255,510

General information and associated licensing parameters are provided below. Public notices provide specific information regarding this auction. This fact sheet includes:

Key Dates
Licenses Offered
Permissible Operations
License Period and Construction Requirements
Small Business Bidding Credit
Tribal Land Bidding Credit
Incumbents
Licensing Rules

Key Dates

Event	Date
Comments Due	2/22/2013
Reply Comments Due	3/14/2013
Auction Tutorial Available (via Internet)	4/30/2013
Form 175 (Short Form) Application Filing Window Opens	4/30/2013; 12:00 pm ET
Form 175 (Short Form) Application Filing Deadline	5/9/2013; 6:00 pm ET
Upfront Payments Deadline	6/13/2013; 6:00 pm ET
Mock Auction	7/12/2013
Auction Start	7/16/2013
Auction Closed	8/6/2013

Licenses Offered

The Lower and Upper Paging Bands Auction (Auction 95) will offer 5,905 paging licenses consisting of 4,902 licenses in the lower paging bands (35 MHz, 43 MHz, 152 and 158 MHz, 454 and 459 MHz) and 1,003 licenses in the upper paging bands (929 MHz and 931 MHz). Auction 95 includes licenses that remained unsold from previous auctions, licenses on which a winning bidder in a previous auction defaulted, and licenses for spectrum previously associated with licenses that cancelled or terminated. In a few cases, the available license does not cover the entire geographic area due to an excluded area or previous partitioning. The complete list of licenses available for Auction 95 is provided in electronic format on the Summary tab. For more detail about the specific frequencies of the licenses, refer to Attachment B of the Auction 95 Procedures Public Notice (DA 13-535).

Permissible Operations

The frequency bands are allocated for paging services. Licensees may use the spectrum to provide (1) one-way messaging, (2) two-way messaging, and (3) fixed wireless services. Provision of these services is subject to the technical limitations set forth in Parts 22 and Part 90.

Paging systems were traditionally one-way signaling systems, but they currently consist of two basic types: a wide-area general-use type providing subscription service to the public; and an in-building, private paging system, limited to a commercial building or the general area of a manufacturing plant.

During the past 15 years, the Commission has expanded the permissible operations for Part 22 paging licenses. In 1996, CMRS licensees, including paging licensees, were given maximum flexibility to offer all types of fixed, mobile, and hybrid services. In 2005, the Commission further revised the Part 22 rules by eliminating (1) the requirement that paging stations be “domestic common carriers,” (2) the restriction limiting eligibility to “communications common carriers,” and (3) various other technical and licensing restrictions. See the Part 22 Report and Order (FCC 04-287) (pdf) at paras. 101 and 141-161. These changes expanded the potential uses for paging licenses and increased the flexibility of Part 22 licensees to respond to the marketplace and meet the needs of consumers.

License Period and Construction Requirements

CMRS licenses are issued for a ten-year term from the initial license grant date. A licensee of a geographic area would be required to provide coverage to one-third of the population in its area within three years of the license grant, and to two-thirds of the population within its area within five years of the license grant. In the alternative, the licensee may provide substantial service to the geographic license area within five years of license grant. See the Paging Second Report and Order (FCC 97-59) (pdf ) at para. 63.

Small Business Bidding Credit

Bidding credits are available to small businesses (or a consortium of small businesses, as defined in 47 C.F.R. § 1.2110(c)(6)). A bidding credit represents the amount by which a bidder’s winning bids are discounted. The size of the bidding credit depends on the average annual gross revenues for the preceding three years of the applicant, its affiliates, its controlling interests, the affiliates of its controlling interest, and any entities with which the applicant has an attributable material interest, as defined by the Commission’s rules:

A bidder with attributed average annual gross revenues that do not exceed $15 million for the preceding three years receives a 25 percent discount on its winning bids. 47 C.F.R. §§ 1.2110(f), 22.217 , 22.223(b)(2).
A bidder with attributed average annual gross revenues that do not exceed $3 million for the preceding three years receives a 35 percent discount on its winning bids. 47 C.F.R. §§ 1.2110(f), 22.217 , 22.223(b)(1).

Bidding credits are not cumulative; qualifying applicants receive either the 25 percent or the 35 percent bidding credit on its winning bids, but not both.

Tribal Land Bidding Credit

A winning bidder that intends to use its license(s) to deploy facilities and provide services to federally-recognized tribal lands that are unserved by any telecommunications carrier or that have a wireline penetration rate equal to or below 85 percent may be eligible to receive a tribal land bidding credit. A tribal land bidding credit is in addition to, and separate from, any other bidding credit for which a winning bidder may qualify. A winning bidder need not qualify for a small business bidding credit to be eligible for a tribal land bidding credit. See 47 C.F.R. §§ 1.2107(e) and 1.2110(f).

Incumbents

Incumbent (non-geographic) licensees operating under their existing authorizations are entitled to full protection from co-channel interference. Geographic area licensees are likewise afforded co-channel interference protection from incumbent licensees. Adjacent geographic area licensees are obligated to resolve possible interference concerns of adjacent geographic area licensees by negotiating a mutually acceptable agreement with the neighboring geographic licensee.

Licensing Rules

47 C.F.R. Parts 1, 22, and 90

Releases P

8/9/2013
PUBLIC NOTICE (DA 13-1736)
Auction of Lower and Upper Paging Bands Licenses Closes; Winning Bidders Announced for Auction 95
Down Payments and FCC Forms 601 and 602 Due August 23, 2013, Final Payments Due September 9, 2013, Ten-Day Petition to Deny Period.

6/27/2013
PUBLIC NOTICE (DA 13-1444)
Auction of Upper and Lower Paging Bands Licenses; 37 Bidders Qualified to Participate in Auction 95
The Wireless Telecommunications Bureau identifies 37 applicants found to be qualified to bid in the upcoming auction of licenses for lower and upper paging bands spectrum

6/5/2013
PUBLIC NOTICE (DA 13-1315)
Auction of Upper and Lower Paging Bands Licenses; Status of Short-Form Applications to Participate in Auction 95

3/29/2013
PUBLIC NOTICE (DA 13-535)
Auction of Lower and Upper Paging Bands Licenses Scheduled for July 16, 2013; Notice and Filing Requirements, Minimum Opening Bids, Upfront Payments, and Other Procedures for Auction 95
The Wireless Telecommunications Bureau establishes the procedures and minimum opening bids for the upcoming Lower and Upper Paging Bands Auction.

2/1/2013
PUBLIC NOTICE (DA 13-60)
Auction of Lower and Upper Paging Bands Licenses Scheduled for July 16, 2013; Comment Sought On Competitive Bidding Procedures For Auction 95
The Wireless Telecommunications Bureau announces an auction of 5,905 upper and lower bands paging licenses to commence on July 16, 2013, and seeks comment on the auction procedures.
Copies of comments and reply comments filed in response to this public notice may be found by using the search function of ECFS under proceeding 13-12 or through the FCC Reference Information Center, which is located at the Commission's Headquarters.