Partner Marc Martin was quoted in the Law360* article, "The Biggest Telecom Developments of 2019," regarding the FCC's aggressive steps to free up spectrum for new 5G technologies.

The FCC charted an ambitious agenda in the last year that focused on clearing and repurposing the low-hanging fruit of the spectrum world, making more room on the airwaves to power the wireless technologies that consumers and industry demand. “Everyone is looking underneath the sofa to find something to repurpose for 5G. That’s just the big push,” said Marc.

Further, the agency spent a large part of the year hashing out how to repurpose satellite spectrum in the so-called C-Band so mobile carriers can use it, mulling over either a private sale or a public auction to redistribute the licenses. Pai ultimately announced he’ll pursue a public auction, but only after the issue turned into a political hot potato that escalated to the Oval Office due to efforts by Sen. John Kennedy, R-La., to ensure a government-run auction. Finally, “the C-Band proceeding seems to be falling into place,” Marc said. "It was always going to be legally suspect to conduct private auctions.”

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