OVERNIGHT TECH: FCC will probe Verizon-cable commercial deals

By Brendan Sasso - 03/08/12 07:17 PM ET

THE LEDE: The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) announced Thursday it will probe portions of the agreement between Verizon and a coalition of cable companies to cross-sell each other's services as part of its broader review of the companies' spectrum deal.

"After an initial review of the proposed spectrum license transfers as well as the commercial agreements between Verizon Wireless and several cable companies, the Commission staff has concluded that portions of the commercial agreements are inseparable from the proposed license transfer and related wireless competition issues," an FCC spokesman said. "Consequently, those portions of the commercial agreements will be examined within the license transfer proceeding."

The FCC will review the other portions of the commercial deal in a separate inquiry. It was not immediately clear which "portions" of the commercial agreement were deemed inseparable from the spectrum deal.

In its filing with the FCC earlier this week, Verizon argued that the agency lacks the legal authority to review the commercial deals.

Although the $3.6 billion spectrum deal and the cross-marketing arrangements were announced simultaneously, Verizon and the cable companies argue that they are separate and unrelated deals.

Also on Thursday, the FCC asked Verizon and the cable companies, which include Comcast and Time Warner, for more information about the transactions.

The FCC questioned Comcast about whether it ever planned to use its spectrum. The agency pointed to statements from Comcast chief financial officer Michael Angelakis that indicated Comcast might have never planned to build its own wireless network.

The letter also asked for Comcast's analysis of how the failed AT&T/ T-Mobile merger would have affected their business.

In a letter to Verizon, the FCC requested more of the company's business data and how it plans to use the additional wireless spectrum.

"We believe getting previously unused spectrum into the hands of consumers is strongly in the public interest," a Verizon spokesman said. "We will continue to respond completely and rapidly to the questions about both the spectrum transfer and the separate cross-marketing agreements at the FCC and DOJ, thereby demonstrating the benefits they bring to consumers."

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The FCC fired back at Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) on Thursday after the Republican lawmaker accused the agency of stonewalling his probe over wireless start-up LightSquared.

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