Comcast Statement
Regarding Federal Communications Commission Order Approving Verizon
Wireless-SpectrumCo Spectrum Transfer
August 23, 2012
Today, the Federal Communications Commission issued an Order approving
the spectrum sale from SpectrumCo, LLC (a joint venture between Comcast
Corporation, Time Warner Cable, and Bright House Networks) to Verizon
Wireless.
In a blog post on Comcast Voices, David L. Cohen, Executive Vice
President, Comcast Corporation wrote:
“We are pleased that the Federal Communications Commission has now voted
unanimously to approve the spectrum sale and transfer by Comcast and
other cable companies to Verizon Wireless. This timely approval in
conjunction with the recent Consent Decree negotiated with the
Department of Justice, will promote innovation, investment, competition,
and consumer choice for video, voice, high-speed Internet, and wireless
services in the ways we planned when the deal was announced.
“As approved by both agencies, the spectrum transfer and the commercial
agreements were found to be pro-consumer and strongly in the public
interest. In fact, consumers have already begun to see benefits in the
21 markets where we’ve begun to jointly market bundled services.
“The terms of the FCC's approval will allow for the optimized use of
spectrum to benefit consumers and like the DOJ consent decree preserves
the most important goals of our agreements. Specifically:
Comcast will be able to market
Verizon Wireless products and services across our entire footprint under
a renewable agent agreement (for the first five years, we will be
exclusive to Verizon Wireless, but Verizon Wireless will not be able to
enforce the exclusivity provisions after five years).
Comcast and Verizon Wireless will
be able to work together for at least five years in an R&D partnership
to develop innovative technologies that integrate wireless and wireline
products and services; after five years, we can continue that
partnership with the agreement of the DOJ.
Comcast has the right to opt into
an MVNO (or reseller) agreement with Verizon Wireless at any time after
six months’ notice.
Verizon Wireless will be able to
market Comcast products and services throughout the vast majority of the
Comcast footprint (everywhere outside the FiOS footprint) under a
renewable agent agreement; after five years, Verizon Wireless can renew
the agreement other than in the DSL footprint where DOJ approval is
required.
“As we said when the
transaction was announced back in December 2011, this is a smart and
efficient way for Comcast to deliver a broader array of wireless
services, and is an efficient deployment of this spectrum.
"We applaud the leadership of Chairman Genachowski, and Commissioners
McDowell, Clyburn, Rosenworcel and Pai, for their prompt yet carefully
focused review of these transactions and look forward to bringing the
benefits to even more consumers across our footprint in the coming
months and years.
