Pleading Cycle Set for License Transfer

September 22, 2016–The FCC’s Wireless Telecommunications Bureau established a pleading cycle today for the transfer of a lower 700 megahertz B-block license and a lower 700 MHz E-block license covering America Samoa from Club 42 CM Limited Partnership to AST Telecom LLC (d/b/a Bluesky). “Our preliminary review indicates that Bluesky would be assigned 18 megahertz of Lower 700 MHz spectrum covering the five counties of American Samoa. Post-transaction, Bluesky would hold 80 to 105 megahertz of spectrum in total, including 30 to 55 megahertz of below-1-GHz spectrum, in American Samoa,” a public notice said. As a result, the agency will review the transaction under its “enhanced factor” review when an entity would hold more than one-third of sub-1 gigahertz spectrum in a market. Petitions to deny are due Oct. 12, oppositions Oct. 19, and replies Oct. 26 in WT docket 16-264.