Not really sure how I feel about all this. I definitely am more inclined to side with the IDA than DISH, as they have genuine concerns, whereas DISH's seem to be simply defensive to having real competition for a change. DISH has been around for over 20 years and still offers meager bandwidth with high latency and low data caps at exorbitant prices. They've been more-or-less stagnant for years, and someone else comes along and upsets that by offering far superior service and they're trying whatever they can to stop that, instead of simply improving their own service which, again, they've had years to do.
And the comment in the article that it's "been a pet peeve of DISH for a while as it is
sitting on a giant amount of 12 GHz spectrum" makes me further question their motives, because if they've simply been "sitting on" it, then it only seems right someone else should be allowed to use it, vs letting them squander it. Though I'm not sure how accurate that statement is (NBC isn't exactly known for great journalism), and another source (rcwireless) says they've been asking the FCC for permission to use this band since 2016, so maybe it's not their fault. But then the same article says the following:
QuoteStarlink clearly takes issue with this, calling RS Access' study "technically meritless" and going further, swiping at Dish's record of not delivering on build-out requirements for its massive spectrum holdings and saying that no more spectrum rules should be changed to accommodate the company. "Dish has never lived up to its repeated promises to deploy a new terrestrial network using the exclusive licenses already stored up in its warehouses—the Commission simply cannot gift any more spectrum to any operator with this track record of broken promises and stranded consumers," SpaceX said, going on to add that Dish hasn't even met previous deployment requirements for the 12 GHz band at issue.
This again seems to indicate DISH's nonuse of the spectrum is their own fault, but it's hard to know what's accurate and what's mudslinging. But even DISH's own website says they purchased this band in 2004, which means that at the very least they sat on it for 12 years, and it also details other bands they've purchased over the years, yet no info is given as to any actual use of these bands and, given the lack of real advancement seen by them over the years, I have to believe they have a habit of buying up spectrum and "sitting on it." Also, considering the habit of wireless providers as a whole often failing to follow through with various promises, whether it be network buildouts or service provisions or fees, and the fact Starlink is actually making real progress, and quickly, I tend to favor the latter, and it's certainly nice to have some real competition finally, not just for satellite providers, but for rural DSL and cable providers as well.
Does anyone have any
good sources that elaborate more on whether DISH has genuinely been making efforts to use the band only to have Starlink swoop in and mess up those plans or if they really were just hoarding it and only now that Starlink is using it are making a big deal about it?