Verizon vows to auction off wireless spectrum

Verizon has proposed an auction which would see the company unload much of its wireless spectrum holdings.

The company said that should it be granted approval for its proposed $3.6bn wireless spectrum acquisition, it would begin the process of selling off all of its other holdings in the 700 Mhz spectrum space.

The auction, were it to happen, would primarily be aimed at selling off parts of the spectrum to smaller carriers for use in rural coverage networks and boosting coverage for carriers in major cities and large market areas.

"Since wireless operators, large and small, have expressed concern about the availability of high-quality spectrum, we believe our 700 Mhz licences will be attractive to a wide range of buyers," said Verizon vice president of business development, Molly Feldman.

"Moreover, provided our acquisition of AWS spectrum is approved, our open sale process will ensure these A and B spectrum licences are quickly and fairly made available for the benefit of other carriers and their customers."

The use of the 700Mhz spectrum has become a key to the rollout of wireless broadband networks.

Authorities have moved to open pieces of the spectrum up in both the US and UK for broadband use.

Verizon has been in the thick of the spectrum debate for a number of years.

The company was a key player the run-up to and aftermath of the 2008 US auction and late last year the firm brokered its mega-deal to acquire space from a group which includes industry heavyweights Comcast and Time Warner.

That deal is set to close this summer, pending approval from US regulators.