The 700MHz auction may be over (and the carriers looking anxiously in their wallets to see how they’re going to pay for their new spectrum) but unsold Block D is still causing controversy.  The FCC has been asked to investigate accusations that an adviser from The Public Safety Spectrum Trust Corporation, who manage the public service aspect of Block D, both discouraged bids and demanded “fees” from auction participants that some believe total $50m each year, over and above the $1.3bn reserve. 

“”[W]hile not accusing any party of wrongdoing, the letter asks the FCC to investigate whether discussions between Morgan O’Brien of Cyren Call and possible D Block bidder Frontline Wireless caused Frontline to lose financial backing and scared off other bidders” Letter to FCC from the Public Interest Spectrum Coalition, March 19th 2008

Block D received a single $472m bid from Qualcomm, and the FCC was forced to detail its plans to re-list the spectrum with, most likely, a lower reserve figure.  Representative Edward J. Markey, D-Mass, chairman of the House Subcommittee on Telecommunications and the Internet, has requested a hearing that will examine the auction process as a whole, part of which will include investigating adviser Cyren Call.

“The point of the hearing is we don’t know what the problem was, why we didn’t manage to meet the reserve price…. the point of this hearing is we need to figure out what were the concerns of all players. We want to find out what happened here and how we can make it a successful auction” Jessica Schafer, communications director for Representative Markey

No date has been set for any hearing or investigation. 

[via Slashdot]