Lawmakers Ask FCC to Alter Rules For Auction

Democratic Commissioner Michael J. Copps also pressed for clarity on that relationship and called on the FCC to act as an "honest broker" between the public-safety community and a commercial carrier.

"This time the FCC needs to assume that more-active role upfront in the process," Copps said.

Another issue for some lawmakers was that most of the airwaves successfully auctioned ended up with the country's largest wireless carriers, not new, competing carriers. Verizon Wireless and AT&T won 70 percent of the licenses of 700-megahertz spectrum.

Markey called the spectrum "beachfront" property, increasingly in demand as wireless technologies expand. "At present, it looks like two mega-resorts are going up on the beachfront in the form of Verizon and AT&T," he said.

Martin said the auction was a success. Verizon Wireless bought its spectrum with the condition that it will allow consumers to use a greater variety of wireless devices and software applications over the new network than is allowed on existing networks.

Republican Commissioner Robert M. McDowell was more critical of the auction. He said the rules deterred smaller carriers from bidding. Smaller carriers had to compete with one another to buy regional licenses, he said, which as a result cost more.

"Smaller players had nowhere else to go, all while no new broadband provider emerged," McDowell said.