And the Winner is...
Christopher Carter
...not Google. Or is it? The Spectrum auction has concluded with total bids in excess of $19.0B. Verizon Wireless (VZW)and AT&T appear to have been the high bidders, with VZW bidding $4.7B for the entire C block of spectrum. While Google did not "win" any spectrum bids, their efforts certainly helped to shape the bidding process and the open-access provisions of the auction. VZW, just this week, held a conference where they discussed their vision of open-access on their network. Time will tell if their vision and that of the FCC, and Google, align. Goes back to that old saying, it depends on what your definition of open-access is. Kind of like is, is? Let's hope it turns out to be a true step forward in the development of an open platform that enables the creation of the next generation of mobile applications and services, unlike Apple's platform and SDK for the iPhone, accessed only via the walled garden known as the iStore. Does Apple understand their is no "i" in open? But their is in capitalism! Two, in fact.