§  20.22   Rules governing mobile spectrum holdings.

   (a) Applicants for mobile wireless licenses for commercial use, for
   assignment or transfer of control of such licenses, or for long-term de
   facto transfer leasing arrangements as defined in § 1.9003 of this
   chapter and long-term spectrum manager leasing arrangements as
   identified in § 1.9020(e)(1)(ii) must demonstrate that the public
   interest, convenience, and necessity will be served thereby. The
   Commission will evaluate any such license application consistent with
   the policies set forth in Policies Regarding Mobile Spectrum Holdings,
   Report and Order, FCC 14-63, WT Docket No. 12-269, adopted May 15,
   2014.

   (b) Attribution of interests. (1) The following criteria will apply to
   attribute partial ownership and other interests in spectrum holdings
   for purposes of:

   (i) Applying a mobile spectrum holding limit to the licensing of
   spectrum through competitive bidding; and

   (ii) Applying the initial spectrum screen to secondary market
   transactions.

   (2) Controlling interests shall be attributable. Controlling interest
   means majority voting equity ownership, any general partnership
   interest, or any means of actual working control (including negative
   control) over the operation of the licensee, in whatever manner
   exercised.

   (3) Non-controlling interests of 10 percent or more in spectrum shall
   be attributable. Interests of less than 10 percent in spectrum shall be
   attributable if such interest confers de facto control, including but
   not limited to partnership and other ownership interests and any stock
   interest in a licensee.

   (4) The following interests in spectrum shall also be attributable to
   holders:

   (i) Officers and directors of a licensee shall be considered to have an
   attributable interest in the entity with which they are so associated.
   The officers and directors of an entity that controls a licensee or
   applicant shall be considered to have an attributable interest in the
   licensee.

   (ii) Ownership interests that are held indirectly by any party through
   one or more intervening corporations will be determined by successive
   multiplication of the ownership percentages for each link in the
   vertical ownership chain and application of the relevant attribution
   benchmark to the resulting product, except that if the ownership
   percentage for an interest in any link in the chain exceeds 50 percent
   or represents actual control, it shall be treated as if it were a 100
   percent interest. (For example, if A owns 20% of B, and B owns 40% of
   licensee C, then A's interest in licensee C would be 8%. If A owns 20%
   of B, and B owns 51% of licensee C, then A's interest in licensee C
   would be 20% because B's ownership of C exceeds 50%).

   (iii) Any person who manages the operations of a licensee pursuant to a
   management agreement shall be considered to have an attributable
   interest in such licensee if such person, or its affiliate, has
   authority to make decisions or otherwise engage in practices or
   activities that determine, or significantly influence, the nature or
   types of services offered by such licensee, the terms upon which such
   services are offered, or the prices charged for such services.

   (iv) Any licensee or its affiliate who enters into a joint marketing
   arrangement with another licensee or its affiliate shall be considered
   to have an attributable interest in the other licensee's holdings if it
   has authority to make decisions or otherwise engage in practices or
   activities that determine or significantly influence the nature or
   types of services offered by the other licensee, the terms upon which
   such services are offered, or the prices charged for such services.

   (v) Limited partnership interests shall be attributed to limited
   partners and shall be calculated according to both the percentage of
   equity paid in and the percentage of distribution of profits and
   losses.

   (vi) Debt and instruments such as warrants, convertible debentures,
   options, or other interests (except non-voting stock) with rights of
   conversion to voting interests shall not be attributed unless and until
   converted or unless the Commission determines that these interests
   confer de facto control.

   (5) The following interests shall be attributable to holders, except to
   lessees and sublessees for the purpose of qualifying to bid on reserved
   licenses offered in the Incentive Auction, discussed in paragraph (c)
   of this section, on the basis of status as a non-nationwide provider:

   (i) Long-term de facto transfer leasing arrangements as defined in
   § 1.9003 of this chapter and long-term spectrum manager leasing
   arrangements as identified in § 1.9020(e)(1)(ii) that enable commercial
   use shall be attributable to lessees, lessors, sublessees, and
   sublessors for purposes of this section.

   (ii) [Reserved]

   (c) 600 MHz Band holdings. (1) The Commission will reserve licenses for
   up to 30 megahertz of the 600 MHz Band, offered in the Incentive
   Auction authorized by Congress pursuant to 47 U.S.C. 309(j)(8)(G), for
   otherwise qualified bidders who do not hold an attributable interest in
   45 megahertz or more of the total 134 megahertz of below-1-GHz spectrum
   which consists of the cellular (50 megahertz), the 700 MHz (70
   megahertz), and the SMR (14 megahertz) spectrum in a Partial Economic
   Area (PEA), as calculated on a county by county population-weighted
   basis, utilizing 2010 U.S. Census data. The amount of reserved and
   unreserved 600 MHz Band licenses will be determined based on the
   market-based spectrum reserve set forth in Policies Regarding Mobile
   Spectrum Holdings, Report and Order, FCC 14-63, WT Docket No. 12-269,
   adopted May 15, 2014, as well as subsequent Public Notices. Nothing in
   this paragraph will limit, or may be construed to limit, an otherwise
   qualified bidder that is a non-nationwide provider of mobile wireless
   services from bidding on any reserved or unreserved license offered in
   the Incentive Auction.

   (2) For a period of six years, after initial licensing, no 600 MHz Band
   license, regardless of whether it is reserved or unreserved, may be
   transferred, assigned, partitioned, disaggregated, or long term leased
   to any entity that, after consummation of the transfer, assignment, or
   leased on a long term basis, would hold an attributable interest in
   one-third or more of the total suitable and available below-1-GHz
   spectrum as calculated on a county by county population-weighted basis
   in the relevant license area, utilizing 2010 U.S. Census data.

   (3) For a period of six years, after initial licensing, no 600 MHz Band
   reserved license may be transferred, assigned, partitioned,
   disaggregated, or leased on a long term basis to an entity that was not
   qualified to bid on that reserved spectrum license under paragraph
   (c)(1) of this section at the time of the Incentive Auction short-form
   application deadline.

   [ 79 FR 40002 , July 11, 2014, as amended at  80 FR 61970 , Oct. 14, 2015]