DBS operators in the United States have taken an aggressive approach to the advanced wireless services (AWS) spectrum auction currently being held by the FCC, according to ABI Research.
A consortium called Wireless DBS, which included EchoStar, DirecTV, News Corp., Rupert Murdoch, and Charles Ergen qualified as a bidder. However, the DBS operators' bids, although initially among the highest submitted, were largely unsuccessful, and Wireless DBS had dropped out of the race.
This disappointment, the research firm noted, had put a damper on plans for the satellite players to launch their own mobile service based on WiMAX, and would likely pave the way for a WiMAX partnership with an operator such as Clearwire.
If that proved to be the case, it would represent a significant shot in the arm for the already vibrant WiMAX sector, ABI Research said.