Mobilicity Executive Chairman urges Harper to introduce 'Spectrum Screen'
Letter to Prime Minister points to US success in blocking AT&T/T- Mobile merger and preventing carriers from holding too much spectrum
TORONTO, March 5, 2012 /CNW/ - Mobilicity today disclosed that its Executive Chairman John Bitove sent Ottawa a letter in support of a 'Spectrum Screen' similar to that used in the US to successfully limit carrier holdings and prevent hoarding and monopolies.
In his letter last week to Prime Minister Stephen Harper and Minister of Industry/Minister of State Christian Paradis, Bitove attributed Canada's Big 3 carriers' excessive spectrum ownership (more than twice the amount of the highest holders in the US) to "decades of lack of competition and the free spectrum that were gifted to the incumbent carriers back in the 1980s."
Bitove added that "this problem could have been easily avoided if the government had implemented a stringent 'Spectrum Screen' in the first place."
South of the border, the Federal Communications Commission recently applied a Spectrum Screen to help block the proposed AT&T/T-Mobile merger out of fear that one carrier would hold too much spectrum.
The letter also draws a stark comparison between a Spectrum Screen, which ensures a carrier's holdings do not exceed a predefined threshold, and an auction "cap", which specifies how much spectrum a carrier can purchase in a single auction.
In addition to calling for a Spectrum Screen in time for the upcoming government auction, Bitove urged the government to proactively regulate all used and unused spectrum holdings. "Fostering a healthy, competitive wireless industry is in all of our best interests," he concluded.
About Mobilicity (DAVE Wireless)
Mobilicity, Canada's smart mobile carrier, was created to bring down the cost of wireless with unlimited talk, text and data plans, affordable North American coverage, plus popular handsets and smartphones - without locking customers into contracts or charging extra or hidden fees. Everything Mobilicity does adds up to a better wireless experience, not an expensive one. NOW THAT'S SMART.
Formerly known as Data & Audio-Visual Enterprises Wireless Inc. (DAVE Wireless), the company is led by Obelysk, a diversified Canadian holding company, and Quadrangle Capital Partners, a global investor in the telecommunications and media sectors. Mobilicity was named one of Canada's Top 25 Up and Coming Information & Communication Technology start-ups in 2010 by the Branham Group Inc. Further information about Mobilicity can be found at www.mobilicity.ca.
For more information, images or interviews, please contact:
Sheryl Steinberg
Director, Corporate Affairs
Mobilicity
647-70-PRESS
[email protected]
Jennifer Marron
Specialist, Corporate Affairs
Mobilicity
[email protected]
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