PUBLIC NOTICE FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION 445 TWELFTH STREET, S.W. WASHINGTON, D.C. 20554 DA 08-1477 News media information 202/418-0500 Fax-On-Demand 202/418-2830 Internet: http://www.fcc.gov ftp.fcc.gov Released: June 24, 2008 SPRINT NEXTEL CORPORATION AND CLEARWIRE CORPORATION SEEK FCC CONSENT TO TRANSFER CONTROL OF LICENSES AND AUTHORIZATIONS WT Docket No. 08-94 PLEADING CYCLE ESTABLISHED Petitions to Deny Due: July 24, 2008 Oppositions Due: August 4, 2008 Replies Due: August 11, 2008 I. INTRODUCTION Sprint Nextel Corporation (“Sprint”) and Clearwire Corporation (“Clearwire”) (collectively, “the Applicants”) have filed a series of applications pursuant to Section 310(d) of the Communications Act of 1934, as amended.1 In these applications, the Applicants seek Commission approval of the transfer of control of licenses, authorizations, and de facto transfer spectrum leases held by Sprint and Clearwire to a new wireless broadband company called Clearwire Corporation (“New Clearwire”).2 Under the proposed merger, all of Clearwire’s current Commission-authorized license and leaseholding subsidiaries will become directly held by Clearwire MergerSub LLC (“Clearwire MergerSub”) and indirectly held by Clearwire Venture LLC, a direct wholly-owned subsidiary of New Clearwire, the new publicly-traded corporation.3 The surviving Clearwire company will continue to own the stock of its subsidiaries, and its subsidiaries will continue to hold all of the FCC authorizations and spectrum leases that they held prior to the merger. Sprint will transfer control of its wholly-owned subsidiaries that hold all of Sprint’s respective 2.5 GHz related assets to Clearwire Venture LLC, the direct wholly owned subsidiary of New Clearwire.4 Upon this transfer, Sprint will receive shares of New 1 47 U.S.C. § 310(d). 2 See Description of the Transaction and Public Interest Statement, File No. 0003462540 (amended Jun. 24, 2008) (“Public Interest Statement”) at 3. Applicants also seek Commission approval of certain intermediate pro forma assignments involving Sprint licenses and leases that must take place in order to transfer only limited liability companies (“LLCs”) and LLC units to Clearwire MergerSub. Id. at 8-12. 3 Id. at 8. 4 Id. 2 Clearwire amounting to an approximate 51 percent ownership, resulting in Sprint obtaining majority ownership of New Clearwire at the closing.5 These transfer of control applications pertain specifically to Broadband Radio Service (“BRS”) and Educational Broadband Service (“EBS”) licenses and leases in the 2.5 GHz Band, point-to-point microwave and Local Multipoint Distribution Service (“LMDS”) stations licensed under Part 101 of the Commission’s Rules, and Cable Television Relay Service (“CARS”) licenses issued under Part 78 of the Commission’s Rules. Sprint also has wireless radio licenses in the 800 MHz, 900 MHz, 1.9 GHz and 2.3 GHz bands. II. SECTION 310(d) APPLICATIONS The following applications for consent to the transfer of control of licenses to New Clearwire have been assigned the file numbers listed below. File No. Licensee Lead Call Sign 0003367640 Fixed Wireless Holdings, LLC B012 0003368271 Clearwire Spectrum Holdings, LLC B359 0003368272 Clearwire Spectrum Holdings II, LLC B085 0003368277 DCT Los Angeles, LLC WGX394 0003368281 BWC Spectrum, LLC B024 0003368283 SFT Spectrum, LLC WHJ893 0003368578 Winbeam, Inc. B117 0003368583 Clearwire Hawaii Partners Spectrum, LLC B192 0003462540 Nextel Spectrum Acquisition Corp. B003 0003462970 Alda Wireless Holdings, Inc. KEW74 0003462971 Alda Tucson, Inc. WMH229 0003462973 American Telecasting of Bismark, Inc. B045 0003462975 American Telecasting of Fort Collins, Inc. B149 0003462976 American Telecasting of Cincinnati, Inc. B081 0003462978 American Telecasting of Lincoln, Inc. B256 0003462981 American Telecasting of Little Rock, Inc. WHT723 0003462982 American Telecasting of Minnesota, Inc. B138 0003462984 American Telecasting of Monterey, Inc. B397 0003462992 American Telecasting of Salem/Eugene, Inc. B133 0003462994 American Telecasting of Redding, Inc. B371 0003462996 Alda Gold, Inc. WDU206 0003462997 American Telecasting of Toledo, Inc. KFK31 0003463000 Broadcast Cable, Inc. WLW814 0003463001 American Telecasting of Youngstown, Inc. B484 0003463007 LA MDS, LLC WHD479 0003463008 American Telecasting of Bend, Inc. WHA674 0003463010 People’s Choice TV of Houston, Inc. WLK305 0003463012 Cherokee Wireless of Knoxville, Inc. WLW953 0003463013 PCTV Gold, Inc. B015 0003463014 WBSCB Licensing Corporation B097 5 Id. 3 File No. Licensee Lead Call Sign 0003463015 WBSM Licensing Corporation B289 0003463023 WBSB Licensing Corporation B050 0003463031 WBSK Licensing Corporation B231 0003463032 American Telecasting of Denver, Inc. WLK321 0003463042 WBSY Licensing Corp. B228 0003463049 American Telecasting of Lansing, Inc. B241 0003463053 Wireless Cable of Indianapolis, Inc. WHT673 0003463059 American Telecasting of Michiana, Inc. B126 0003463072 American Telecasting of Anchorage, Inc. WMX713 0003463089 American Telecasting of Portland, Inc. B358 0003463101 American Telecasting of Sheridan, Inc. WLW820 0003463117 Bay Area Cablevision, Inc. KFF81 0003463136 Kennewick Licensing, LLC WNTJ460 0003463139 People’s Choice TV of Albuquerque, Inc. KFK32 0003463161 SF MDS, LLC WLK228 0003463168 TTI Acquisition Corp. WLW738 0003463175 WBSH Licensing Corporation B188 0003463182 WBSWP Licensing Corporation B469 0003463199 American Telecasting of Columbus, Inc. B095 0003463209 American Telecasting Development, Inc. B002 0003463224 American Telecasting of Jackson, Inc. B209 0003463250 American Telecasting of Medford, Inc. B288 0003463272 American Telecasting of Oklahoma, Inc. B472 0003463274 American Telecasting of Colorado Springs, Inc. B089 0003463299 American Telecasting of Seattle, Inc. WLX546 0003463308 American Telecasting of Green Bay, Inc. B018 0003463449 American Telecasting of Nebraska, Inc. WMH765 0003463451 ATL MDS, LLC WGW309 0003463456 American Telecasting of Yuba City, Inc. B485 0003463460 Fresno MMDS Associates WHT715 0003463461 FMA Licensee Subsidiary, Inc. B291 0003463469 NY MDS, LLC WLK227 0003463470 People’s Choice TC of Tucson, Inc. WHT696 0003463471 Sprint (Bay Area), Inc. WHT700 0003463475 WBSE Licensing Corporation B134 0003463478 WBSR Licensing Corporation B385 0003463479 Wireless Broadband Services of America, LLC WGW352 0003463480 Preferred Entertainment, Inc. WHT641 0003463566 Sprint Wireless Broadband Company, LLC B043 0003463640 WBSFP Licensing Corporation B152 0003463652 WBSS Licensing Corporation WHT689 CAR-20080624AA-09 Fixed Wireless Holdings, LLC WLY740 CAR-20080624AB-09 Fixed Wireless Holdings, LLC WLY828 4 The following applications for consent to the transfer of control of de facto transfer spectrum leases to New Clearwire have been assigned the file numbers listed below. File No. Lessee Lead Lease ID Number 0003368625 Clearwire Spectrum Holdings, LLC L000000240 0003368626 Clearwire Spectrum Holdings II, LLC L000000886 0003368628 Fixed Wireless Holdings, LLC L000000063 0003368649 Clearwire Hawaii Partners Spectrum, LLC L000001566 0003462755 Nextel Spectrum Acquisition Corp. L000000005 0003463035 American Telecasting of Denver, Inc. L000002648 0003463050 American Telecasting of Lansing, Inc. L000002690 0003463060 American Telecasting of Michiana, inc. L000001625 0003463062 American Telecasting of Ft. Collins, Inc. L000002395 0003463068 American Telecasting of Lincoln, Inc. L000002703 0003463080 American Telecasting of Redding, Inc. L000002487 0003463085 Alda Wireless Holdings, Inc. L000000268 0003463092 American Telecasting of Fort Myers, Inc. L000002337 0003463093 Broadcast Cable, Inc. L000002011 0003463094 American Telecasting of Little Rock, Inc. L000000186 0003463100 People’s Choice TV of Houston, Inc. L000001677 0003463103 American Telecasting of Sheridan, Inc. L000002493 0003463105 SpeedChoice of Detroit, Inc. L000001759 0003463106 American Telecasting of Anchorage, Inc. L000002488 0003463107 American Telecasting of Monterey, Inc. L000000225 0003463111 Cherokee Wireless of Knoxville, Inc. L000000239 0003463112 PCTV Gold II, LLC L000000193 0003463115 People’s Choice TV of St. Louis, Inc. L000002312 0003463118 WBSY Licensing Corp. L000003476 0003463122 Bay Area Cablevision, Inc. L000002688 0003463124 SpeedChoice of Phoenix, Inc. L000001990 0003463147 People’s Choice TV of Albuquerque, Inc. L000001777 0003463195 Wireless Broadcasting Systems of Sacramento, Inc. L000000468 0003463208 American Telecasting of Columbus, Inc. L000001638 0003463261 American Telecasting of Medford, Inc. L000002516 0003463426 American Telecasting of Seattle, Inc. L000002685 0003463757 Wireless Broadcasting Systems of America, Inc. L000003674 0003463785 American Telecasting Development, Inc. L000000259 0003463786 American Telecasting of Green Bay, Inc. L000002048 0003463787 American Telecasting of Louisville, Inc. L000000262 0003463788 American Telecasting of Santa Barbara, Inc. L000003594 0003463791 American Telecasting of Yuba City, Inc. L000002700 0003463792 Sprint (Bay Area), Inc. L000000341 0003463793 Wireless Broadband Services of America, LLC L000001595 0003463811 Fresno MMDS Associates L000000485 6027EDSL08 Fixed Wireless Holdings, LLC (sublessee) L000002488 6028BRSL08 Fixed Wireless Holdings, LLC (sublessee) L000000255 5 III. EX PARTE STATUS OF THIS PROCEEDING Pursuant to Section 1.1200(a) of the Commission’s rules,6 the Commission may adopt modified or more stringent ex parte procedures in particular proceedings if the public interest so requires. We announce that this proceeding will be governed by permit-but-disclose ex parte procedures that are applicable to non-restricted proceedings under Section 1.1206 of the Commission’s rules.7 Parties making oral ex parte presentations are directed to the Commission’s statement reemphasizing the public’s responsibility in permit-but-disclose proceedings and are reminded that memoranda summarizing the presentation must contain the presentation’s substance and not merely list the subjects discussed.8 More than a one- or two-sentence description of the views and arguments presented is generally required.9 Other rules pertaining to oral and written presentations are set forth in Section 1.1206(b) as well.10 We urge parties to use the Electronic Comment Filing System (“ECFS”) to file ex parte submissions.11 IV. GENERAL INFORMATION The transfer of control applications referenced herein have been found, upon initial review, to be acceptable for filing. The Commission reserves the right to return any application if, upon further examination, it is determined to be defective and not in conformance with the Commission’s rules or policies. Final action on these applications will not be taken earlier than thirty-one days following the date of this Public Notice.12 Interested parties must file petitions to deny no later than July 24, 2008. Persons and entities that file petitions to deny become parties to the proceeding. They may participate fully in the proceeding, including seeking access to any confidential information that may be filed under a protective order, seeking reconsideration of decisions, and filing appeals of a final decision to the courts. Oppositions to such pleadings must be filed no later than August 4, 2008. Replies to such pleadings must be filed no later than August 11, 2008. All filings concerning matters referenced in this Public Notice should refer to DA 08-1477 and WT Docket No. 08-94, as well as the specific file numbers of the individual applications or other matters to which the filings pertain. Under the Commission’s current procedures for the submission of filings and other documents,13 submissions in this matter may be filed electronically (i.e., though ECFS) or by hand delivery to the Commission’s Massachusetts Avenue location. 6 47 C.F.R. § 1.1200(a). 7 Id. § 1.1206. 8 See Commission Emphasizes the Public’s Responsibilities in Permit-But-Disclose Proceedings, Public Notice, 15 FCC Rcd 19945 (2000). 9 See 47 C.F.R. § 1.1206(b)(2). 10 Id. § 1.1206(b). 11 See discussion infra Part V. 12 See 47 U.S.C. § 309(b). 13 See Implementation of Interim Electronic Filing Procedures for Certain Commission Filings, Order, 16 FCC Rcd 21483 (2001); see also FCC Announces a New Filing Location for Paper Documents and a New Fax Number for 6 · If filed by ECFS,14 comments shall be sent as an electronic file via the Internet to http://www.fcc.gov/e-file/ecfs.html. In completing the transmittal screen, commenters should include their full name, Postal Service mailing address, and the applicable docket number. Parties may also submit an electronic comment by Internet e-mail. To get filing instructions for e-mail comments, commenters should send an e-mail to ecfs@fcc.gov, and should include the following words in the body of the message, “get form .” A sample form and directions will be sent in reply. · If filed by paper, the original and four copies of each filing must be filed by hand or messenger delivery, by commercial overnight courier, or by first-class or overnight U.S. Postal Service mail (although we continue to experience delays in receiving U.S. Postal Service mail). The Commission’s contractor, Natek, Inc., will receive hand-delivered or messenger-delivered paper filings for the Commission’s Secretary at 236 Massachusetts Avenue, N.E., Suite 110, Washington, D.C. 20002. The filing hours at this location are 8:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. All hand deliveries must be held together with rubber bands or fasteners. Any envelopes must be disposed of before entering the building. Commercial overnight mail (other than U.S. Postal Service Express Mail and Priority Mail) must be sent to 9300 East Hampton Drive, Capitol Heights, MD 20743. U.S. Postal Service first-class mail, Express Mail, and Priority Mail should be addressed to 445 12th Street, S.W., Washington, D.C. 20554. All filings must be addressed to the Commission’s Secretary, Office of the Secretary, Federal Communications Commission. One copy of each pleading must be delivered electronically, by e-mail or facsimile, or if delivered as paper copy, by hand or messenger delivery, by commercial overnight courier, or by first- class or overnight U.S. Postal Service mail (according to the procedures set forth above for paper filings), to: (1) the Commission's duplicating contractor, Best Copy and Printing, Inc., at FCC@BCPIWEB.COM or (202) 488-5563 (facsimile); (2) B. Lynn F. Ratnavale, Broadband Division, Wireless Telecommunications Bureau, at lynn.ratnavale@fcc.gov or (202) 418-1246 (facsimile); (3) Susan Singer, Spectrum and Competition Policy Division, Wireless Telecommunications Bureau, at susan.singer@fcc.gov or (202) 418-7447 (facsimile); (4) Neil Dellar, Office of General Counsel, at neil.dellar@fcc.gov or (202) 418-1234 (facsimile); (5) Gloria Conway, Media Bureau, at gloria.conway@fcc.gov or (202) 418-1189 (facsimile). Copies of the applications and any subsequently-filed documents in this matter may be obtained from Best Copy and Printing, Inc. in person at 445 12th Street, S.W., Room CY-B402, Washington, D.C. 20554, via telephone at (202) 488-5300, via facsimile at (202) 488-5563, or via e-mail at FCC@BCPIWEB.COM. The applications and any associated documents are also available for public inspection and copying during normal reference room hours at the following Commission office: FCC Reference Information Center, 445 12th Street, S.W., Room CY-A257, Washington, D.C. 20554. The applications are also available electronically through the Commission’s ECFS, which may be accessed on the Commission’s Internet website at http://www.fcc.gov. In addition, applications filed under Parts 22, 24, 90, and 101 of the Commission’s rules are available electronically through ULS, which may be accessed on the Commission’s Internet website. Additional information regarding the transaction will be available on the FCC's Office of General Counsel's website, http://www.fcc.gov/ogc, which will contain General Correspondence, Public Notice, 16 FCC Rcd 22165 (2001); Reminder: Filing Locations for Paper Documents and Instructions for Mailing Electronic Media, Public Notice, 18 FCC Rcd 16705 (2003). 14 See Electronic Filing of Documents in Rulemaking Proceedings, GC Docket No. 97-113, Report and Order, 13 FCC Rcd 11322 (1998). 7 a fully indexed, unofficial listing and electronic copies of all materials in this docket. To request materials in accessible formats for people with disabilities (Braille, large print, electronic files, audio format), send an e-mail to fcc504@fcc.gov or call the Consumer & Governmental Affairs Bureau at 202- 418-0530 (voice), 202-418-0432 (tty). For further information, contact Lynn Ratnavale, Broadband Division, Wireless Telecommunications Bureau, at (202) 418-1514. -FCC-