700MHz auction exceeds $10 Billion, open-access just one bid away

With weeks still to go, your dysfunctional Uncle Sam is briskly rubbing his hands at having raised more than $10 Billion from the 700MHz auction. This, after just 16 rounds of bidding. But we're not happy to say the least. The all powerful, all propagating 700MHz "C" Block continues to stagnate at a bid of $4.3B -- unchanged since round 13. Perhaps the other contestants are waiting to see if Google carries through with their $4.6B pledge to trigger the open-access rule. Round 17 begins in just 3 hours and requires a minimum bid of $4,713,823,000. So let's get the lead out bidders, what's another $400 million compared to our undying loyalty?

[blitzio @ Jan 31st 2008 7:10AM]

Ah well, at least its good to see theres still a lot of money being thrown around despite the economic downturn.

[r3loaded @ Jan 31st 2008 7:34AM]

Welcome to the wonderful world known as the financial sector. I see you're a bit of a newbie here, but don't worry, I'll explain the US economy to you in two sentences:

- Rich guy gets richer
- Average Joe and poor Bob get screwed over

Look at the subprime mortgage crisis for a good example

[RichardBronosky @ Jan 31st 2008 9:19AM]

[quote=r3loaded]
- Rich guy gets richer
- Average Joe and poor Bob get screwed over

Look at the subprime mortgage crisis for a good example
[/quote]

I see that you are a bit of a cynic, but don't worry, I'll get you up to speed.
- The rich guy keeps doing what he did to get rich. It usually continues to payoff.
- The poor guy keeps doing what he did to get poor. But he likes to spend as if he is rich and ends up in a world of hurt and teaches his children to do the same.
- When the government starts to accuse private lenders of discrimination and urges them to lend to people who have not previously met criteria, you end up with a mortgage crisis.

I grew up in government housing. My mother, however, refused welfare and food stamps, and taught her boys to be responsible. We continue to do what our mother taught us to do. That makes us evil, apparently.

I have pitty on those who are loosing their homes right now. It sucks. But I blame the people who educated them. It reminds me of http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Moth_(Lost) Luckily I DIDN'T grow up with someone telling me that society was against me, I would never get ahead, and that it was okay to take something you hadn't earned. I would have been another statistic.

[RichardBronosky @ Jan 31st 2008 9:21AM]

[quote=r3loaded]
- Rich guy gets richer
- Average Joe and poor Bob get screwed over

Look at the subprime mortgage crisis for a good example
[/quote]

I see that you are a bit of a cynic, but don't worry, I'll get you up to speed.
- The rich guy keeps doing what he did to get rich. It usually continues to payoff.
- The poor guy keeps doing what he did to get poor. But he likes to spend as if he is rich and ends up in a world of hurt and teaches his children to do the same.
- When the government starts to accuse private lenders of discrimination and urges them to lend to people who have not previously met criteria, you end up with a mortgage crisis.

I grew up in government housing. My mother, however, refused welfare and food stamps, and taught her boys to be responsible. We continue to do what our mother taught us to do. That makes us evil, apparently.

I have pitty on those who are loosing their homes right now. It sucks. But I blame the people who educated them. It reminds me of http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Moth_(Lost) Luckily I DIDN'T grow up with someone telling me that society was against me, I would never get ahead, and that it was okay to take something you hadn't earned. I would have been another statistic.

[Zorque @ Jan 31st 2008 7:36AM]

So whoever wins, we all.. win?

[producerism @ Jan 31st 2008 7:44AM]

ya, I bet. Things just keep getting better all the time, right? heh.

[Steven @ Jan 31st 2008 7:54AM]

I love it - only the government can figure out how to sell something it doesn't possess...

[Flashpoint @ Jan 31st 2008 8:00AM]

When there's just 15 seconds left, I'll put in my bid for $5.195 Billion

[StrangeBum @ Jan 31st 2008 8:41AM]

Damn. You got me beat then. I was just going to throw in a bid for $5.1875 Billion

[Todd @ Jan 31st 2008 9:41AM]

"...Round 17 begins in just 3 hours and requires a minimum bid of $4,713,823,000..."

This is what we have been waiting for! Please god, do not let AT&T get it.

[Eddie @ Jan 31st 2008 9:44AM]

haha, true that and I love your avatar XD

[Jake @ Jan 31st 2008 10:06AM]

I love how you can bid on the D block but if you win you have to build a network for fire departments and police... If I were in charge, and very brave and unethical, I'd buy both C and D and blur the lines between the two. There's no way that fire and police need the kind of bandwidth being reserved for them in D block. What, they need full screen streaming video in their cruisers? Or is it for full screen streaming video from the cruisers to our TVs? We're not far from The Running Man...

[Aaron @ Jan 31st 2008 10:18AM]

Their was bidding in every round until it was one bid away from the open access rule. Now we are in round 17 of bidding and all action has mysteriously stopped.

[Hax Or @ Jan 31st 2008 10:37AM]

Dysfunctional government?

That's the understatement of the year!

Now hold still while I waterboard you until your life signs start wavering...

[Jeebus @ Jan 31st 2008 5:09PM]

I was waterboarding off the coast of Florida last week. Very refreshing.

[Mark Regan @ Jan 31st 2008 11:02AM]

I hope that NO one except Google makes further bids on this spectrum, and that Google is then awarded EXCLUSIVE USE of the frequencies, and can then start and operate their own Cell/broadband wireless internet/PDA/TV/Radio/MP3Download/SoftwareDownload service using their Google Android (GPhone) hardware and software platform.

Google is the ONLY company that could provide genuine technically progressive competition to the world's cell phone, wireline, internet, cable, and proprietary software purveyors who are out to bilk their own customers.

Google's answer is to provide THE BEST PRODUCT, SERVICE, AND SUPPORT IN A USER FRIENDLY MANNER WITH VALUE ENHANCED SERVICES FOR FREE OR ALMOST FREE, in cooperation with their advertisers, who benefit together with Google and Google's customers.

The Google genius' who thought of this manner of doing business are HATED by the Microsoft and ATT and Comcast folks because they are a real threat to their OLD way of doing business, by providing shoddy services, small selection of products, and HIGH prices using proprietary equipment and software that is soon obsolete and needs upgrading at even higher prices in order to continue receiving even poorer services.

[Miguel @ Jan 31st 2008 1:55PM]

Wow, fanboi much? Just what I want on my cell phone--targeted ads from Google's clients. Except I don't.

If Google wins this auction, they'll need to build out a cellular network, and I'd love to know how long we have to wait for that infrastructure to fall into place. Probably about the same time the FCC is auctioning off another highly desireable block. Or they could rent the spectrum to other companies with certain conditions on its use.

Will someone please explain to me why Google is the savior of the universe? It's a company, out to make money, just like everyone else.

[adam @ Jan 31st 2008 11:10AM]

I think the auction went over in round 17. I see a bid for $4,713,823,000 on the FCC auction website. Open access here we come?

[Scott Equine @ Jan 31st 2008 11:22AM]

Love the Goog, but if they do buy it, they still have to build a network to support it... and that'll make $5bn seem like small change.

8 mins till around 18... Wow!

[Felnor @ Jan 31st 2008 11:34AM]

Looks like they did. I hope that was google. Round 18 is underway now and I do hope that Google ends up winning this. STICK IT THEM GOOGLE!!!

[Charles R Hamilton @ Jan 31st 2008 12:42PM]

The beginning of SkyNet? Is the end nigh?

[Charles R Hamilton @ Jan 31st 2008 12:42PM]

The beginning of SkyNet? Is the end nigh?

[sam @ Jan 31st 2008 12:57PM]

so when someone bids $4.7bn they win? havent been following this too much. whats the $10bn it already has or summut, do all the companies bidding have to pay a non-refundable $100m or something? as $10bn is over double.

[Allen @ Jan 31st 2008 1:03PM]

To: Google
Subject: 700mhz auction

Is there anything me or my girlfriend can do to convince you to win the C block auction?

[Allen @ Jan 31st 2008 1:12PM]

@RichardBronosky:

I agree with you. I've worked in a consumer electronics store for years, and for some reason it seems like whenever I sell a big TV or surround setup, its to either 1) old, rich people or 2) young, poor people who just got a lot of money from somewhere, usually hitting it big at the tables someplace or winning one of those $5000 scratchers tickets. Also, divorces tend to bring in lots of em.

The old people though all tend to like to talk about their old businesses or the schools they went to. If I ever get a young and wealthy buyer he/she will be a business owner. Over Christmas I remember one guy specifically who runs a cleaning service, and told me he has no education at all. He said he got out of jail when he was 19, and took over his moms cleaning business and grew it until it was city-wide. This guy looked a little rough but he couldn't be any older than 30.

The reason the poor stay poor and the rich stay rich (usually) is because they (usually) keep doing what they always do. The rich either own businesses, put all their hearts and souls into their own education, or manage their money with the utmost frugality. The poor tend to work for other people (and be cynical about it), deny the benefits of education (re: every UAW worker I've ever met at the Ford plant), or spend their money when they have it, instead of saving.

Its a vicious cycle, but the rich do very little to perpetuate it upon the poor.

[zbot @ Jan 31st 2008 1:16PM]

woo, open access is assured!

https://auctionbidding.fcc.gov/auction/index.htm?CFID=1492412&CFTOKEN=60692865&jsessionid=NDJ5HvPprcGyzHp6J3sLRrT1CxGG2tKfGWKzVnNjfZp96v3nM51S!-435525525!-1597085389!1201803230171

see the top item in the list.

bid currently: $4,713,823,000
minimum for round 19: $5,226,460,000

[lanejasper69 @ Feb 1st 2008 4:15PM]

I just got my allowance from "Jeeves" where might a bid some extra cash, LOL you gotta be kidding me right? I'd rather save several 3rd world countries, there's enough technology out there ruining things, including the keyboard I'm typing on....wait...oh....nevermid that part. blushes, shuts off monitor, and closes curtains in shame.

Faslane

[cooldude @ Feb 2nd 2008 8:16PM]

Sadly, all the proceeds will go to cover about a month in Iraq. :(

[Lijith @ Mar 3rd 2008 2:04AM]

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