Verizon Pledges to Adhere to Openness Rules

Verizon Wireless says "of course" it will honor openness requirements in the 700 MHz spectrum blocks it won in the recent FCC auction - and Google's complaint has no basis.

Earlier this week, Google filed a request with the Federal Communications Commission asking that the regulatory body monitor Verizon Wireless’s use of 700 MHz spectrum licenses it acquired in the recent spectrum auction to ensure Verizon adheres to openness requirements set out by the FCC. Basically, Google wants to make sure access to Verizon’s 700 MHz spectrum really will be open to any device and any application, not just ones Verizon approves.

Verizon Wireless has informally responded to Google’s filing on its policy blog, saying Google’s filing has “no legal basis” but that Verizon would “of course” abide by the rules for use of the spectrum as set down by the FCC. “If Google or anybody else has evidence that we aren’t playing by the rules, there are legitimate and expedited ways to address that,” wrote Verizon’s Jim Gerace.

Gerace also characterized Google’s filing as self-serving and accused Google of trying to “change the rules” after the spectrum auction has concluded, although it’s not clear how that applies to Google asking the FCC to hold Verizon to the spectrum auction’s requirements. Although Verizon Wireless has recently launched an open network initiative on its existing spectrum licenses, prior to the 700 MHz spectrum auction it had consistently worked against open platform requirements for the spectrum.