Move (of US Gov agencies) to new airwaves to cost $936 mln

http://today.reuters.com/news/newsArticle.aspx?type=domesticNews&storyID=2005-12-28T133130Z_01_FLE841472_RTRUKOC_0_US-TELECOMS-WIRELESS-AUCTION.xml

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Moving U.S. Defense Department and 11 other government agencies' wireless communications to new airwaves will cost almost $936 million, according to a new government estimate released on Wednesday.

The 90 Megahertz of airwaves the agencies will give up will be sold at an auction that could be held as early as June 2006. The airwaves are seen as prime real estate for companies to offer wireless services like mobile wireless high-speed Internet access.

Michael Gallagher, who heads the Commerce Department's National Telecommunications and Information Administration which worked on the cost estimates, said they were less than industry estimates of several billions of dollars.

"We need to make sure the industry has the resources" for new services, he said in a telephone interview. The additional airwaves will help carriers "to be the broadband competitors of tomorrow."

...more...

the FCC loaned the money for the purchase, and the purchasers defaulted on their loans after only paying less than a billion?

Remember that fiasco?