DOJ expected to Block/Restrict AT&T and Verizon in upcoming 600 MHz Auction

Not sure how this should be interpreted.  I think this is intrusion into the competition but . . . I think the DOJ is naive about the value of spectrum in rural markets and the appetite for carriers to build more capacity in those areas when they haven't built out the current spectrum.

AT&T, Verizon may face restrictions in 600 MHz auction

In a significant blow to U.S. mobile market leaders AT&T (NYSE:T) and Verizon Wireless (NYSE:VZ), the U.S. Department of Justice called on the FCC to ensure Sprint Nextel (NYSE:S) and T-Mobile USA have ample opportunity to acquire 600 MHz spectrum that will be made available via 2014's incentive auctions of TV broadcast frequencies.

"The Department concludes that rules that ensure the smaller nationwide networks, which currently lack substantial low-frequency spectrum, have an opportunity to acquire such spectrum could improve the competitive dynamic among nationwide carriers and benefit consumers," said the DoJ's Antitrust Division.

The DoJ successfully prevented AT&T's proposed acquisition of T-Mobile in 2011, going so far as to file suit to prevent the deal. Its new FCC filing could set the stage for restrictions on bidding by AT&T and Verizon, the nation's largest mobile operators and holders of considerable amounts of 700 MHz and 800 MHz spectrum, which is particularly useful for transmitting broadband data inside buildings and over long distances in rural areas.

Read more: AT&T, Verizon may face restrictions in 600 MHz auction - FierceBroadbandWireless http://www.fiercebroadbandwireless.com/story/att-verizon-may-face-restrictions-600-mhz-auction/2013-04-14#ixzz2QdHwOhvN
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What's Your 45?

This was written by Regina Brett, 90 years old, of the Plain Dealer, Cleveland , Ohio .

"To celebrate growing older, I once wrote the 45 lessons life taught me. It is the most requested column I've ever written.

My odometer rolled over to 90 in August, so here is the column once more:1. Life isn't fair, but it's still good.

2. When in doubt, just take the next small step.

3. Life is too short, enjoy it.

4. Your job won't take care of you when you are sick. Your friends and family will.

5. Pay off your credit cards every month.

6. You don't have to win every argument. Stay true to yourself.

7. Cry with someone. It's more healing than crying alone.

8. It's OK to get angry with God. He can take it.

9. Save for retirement starting with your first paycheck.

10. When it comes to chocolate, resistance is futile.

11. Make peace with your past so it won't screw up the present.

12. It's OK to let your children see you cry.

13. Don't compare your life to others. You have no idea what their journey is all about.

14. If a relationship has to be a secret, you shouldn't be in it.

15. Everything can change in the blink of an eye, but don't worry, God never blinks.

16.. Take a deep breath. It calms the mind.

17. Get rid of anything that isn't useful. Clutter weighs you down in many ways.

18. Whatever doesn't kill you really does make you stronger.

19.. It's never too late to be happy. But its all up to you and no one else.

20. When it comes to going after what you love in life, don't take no for an answer.

21. Burn the candles, use the nice sheets, wear the fancy lingerie. Don't save it for a special occasion. Today is special.

22. Over prepare, then go with the flow.

23. Be eccentric now. Don't wait for old age to wear purple.

24. The most important sex organ is the brain.

25. No one is in charge of your happiness but you.

26. Frame every so-called disaster with these words 'In five years, will this matter?'

27. Always choose life.

28. Forgive.

29. What other people think of you is none of your business.

30. Time heals almost everything. Give time time.

31. However good or bad a situation is, it will change.

32. Don't take yourself so seriously. No one else does.

33. Believe in miracles.

34. God loves you because of who God is, not because of anything you did or didn't do.

35. Don't audit life. Show up and make the most of it now.

36. Growing old beats the alternative of dying young.

37. Your children get only one childhood.

38. All that truly matters in the end is that you loved.

39. Get outside every day. Miracles are waiting everywhere.

40. If we all threw our problems in a pile and saw everyone else's, we'd grab ours back.

41. Envy is a waste of time. Accept what you already have, not what you need

42. The best is yet to come...

43. No matter how you feel, get up, dress up and show up.

44. Yield.

45. Life isn't tied with a bow, but it's still a gift."

The Greatest Play in Baseball - Ever

Enjoy true baseball talent and respect!

Two Minute Drill - A Perspective on enthusiasm and focus!

The Two Minute Drill

Marc Lockard mlockard@lockardandwhite.com

Have you ever noticed, while watching professional football, how exciting the last two minutes of each half are?  Two mediocre teams can play an entirely boring game right up until the officials stop the game at two-minutes before the game to notify the teams that there is now only two more minutes of playing time left in the game.  All of a sudden, when the networks come back from commercial, the tempo of the game magically picks up.  Players that looked lethargic when the network broke for commercial are all of a sudden are making great plays and putting forth extra effort!  The quarterback makes use of every available second.  Multiple plays are called, everyone moves with new quickness, the clock is worked judiciously.  The enthusiasm of the team, the crowd, and even the television audience is raised to a new high.   As a viewer I find myself asking why isn’t the whole game played this way?

Then you realize that the really good teams do play the entire game with the same degree of intensity and excitement for the entire game that the mediocre teams do only in the last two minutes before each half.  The teams that play with intensity and excitement the entire game are the consistent winners.  Well the same is true in your life and your career!

Those individuals who put enthusiasm and excitement into everything they do somehow always to be the same individuals who are given the best promotions, who rocket through the corporate ranks or who own and operate their own successful business.  These same individuals also seem to be the ones who have the best families, and enjoy all the better things in life, and always seem to have what appears to a lot of free time.  Their success is simply not an accident!  Their success is a direct result of the effort they put forth.  They operate as if they are always in the last two minutes of the game where every second counts.  They approach all aspects of their life with enthusiasm and excitement, and work consistently to seek out additional opportunities and challenges. 

So why don’t we all participate in the two minute drill?  We all have the capability to do so; we just don’t always focus on the tasks at hand.  Think about the last two days in the office before you left on your last vacation.  You probably attacked every opportunity presented to you with consistent, enthusiastic effort, and you persistently pursued each opportunity as if every second counted.  You knew that those tasks not completed before you left would be there to stare you in the face when you returned.  Your pace quickened, you didn’t waste anytime or energy.  You were committed to clearing out the back-log!  Chances are you accomplished more in those last two days before you left than you had in the last few weeks.  The reason you were able to accomplish so much is that you now HAD to complete those tasks and you knew you simply couldn’t put off any task.  You became focused! 

So why don’t we approach all our opportunities and challenges with this same degree of effort and enthusiasm? Honestly the reason is that for most of us, without an absolute time limit (the last two minutes of the game), we all tend to misuse our time and resources.  After all, if we don’t get that task done today, we can always complete it tomorrow!  But can we?  There always seems to be some new opportunity or some unexpected diversion!  You know you just had to see that new YouTube video everyone is talking about or check out the latest sports scores, or check your Facebook or Twitter account or knock off a few “Angry Birds”.   

But what if you practiced the two minute drill everyday?  What if you played the game of life with enthusiasm and excitement?  What if you methodically and persistently attacked each opportunity that presented itself, when it presented itself? 

One way to find out, try it!  My bet is that you will feel better, discover a new level of confidence in yourself, and begin to feel refreshed and relaxed!

Give it a shot!

God Made a Farmer - Texas Aggie Version

Gig Em'

Marc Lockard '72

LTE to become the most successful mobile phone standard

In an article featured in ElectronicsWeekly.com, Richard Wilson writes:

LTE is set to become the most successful mobile phone standard with the fastest commercial deployment, according to the GSA mobile suppliers association. ..."With 145 LTE networks commercially launched and over 560 user devices announced in the market supporting millions of customers worldwide, LTE technology is mainstream and firmly established as the fastest developing mobile system technology ever," said Alan Hadden, President of the GSA.GSA forecasts that 234 LTE networks will be commercially launched in 83 countries by the end of 2013.

I learned many moons ago not to be too skeptical about the future of wireless technology.  I do remember thinking and verbalizing, "this cellular stuff is just never going to be more than a business tool, there is no way we will ever be watching videos on our phones!"  

My "crystal ball" was I admit just a tad out of focus on that one!

Heard today there are more mobile devices in service in the world than there are people in the world!  

Marc

Dell Board Considering Offer to Take Dell Private

In perhaps THE deal of the last five years, the Dell Board is meeting tonight to consider a leveraged buyout to take Dell private!  In a $24 billion deal, Dell founder Michael Dell is in for $4.00 billion + of his own cash and assets.  I would say here is a founder who believes in his company!

Read more.