vernmental organizations. In 2011, cable TV providers Comcast, Time Warner Cable, and Bright House Networks agreed to sell the spectrum that they purchased through at an auction to their joint venture, SpectrumCo, to Verizon Wireless for $3.6 billion. The cable companies earned a windfall of $1.4 billion on their $2.2 billion spectrum purchase. They subsequently built out a nationwide network of Wi- Fi sites over which cable TV subscribers reach the Internet from Wi-Fi-enabled cafes and public spots. None of this profit went to taxpayers. www.TechnicalPDF.com To ensure that entities that purchase spectrum use it for actual mobile networks, the FCC has ruled that carriers and other winners of spectrum must use their spectrum within 12 years. If it's not used within this time frame, the FCC can reclaim the idle spectrum. This has not stopped spectrum owners from selling their spectrum at huge profits to cellular networks before the 12-year deadline. In fact, the FCC did require that FiberTower return all of its 24GHz that it won, but on which it did not build infrastructure. It allowed FiberTower to keep its other spectrum. See below for information on AT&T's purchase of FiberTower. Fixed Wireless to the Home (WTTH) is the use of cellular service at homes for broadband service. Fixed wireless requires dishes at subscribers' homes and equipment on telephone poles for access to the Internet. It also requires a small converter box to convert the cellular signals to those compatible with the residence's Wi-Fi signals. Acquiring Spectrum by Buying Companies that Own Spectrum Suitable for 5G In addition to leasing spectrum from governments, large mobile carriers purchase companies that already have underutilized or unused spectrum. In recent years Verizon Wireless and AT&T Mobility purchased companies for their high-frequency spectrum. High frequencies are suitable for building www.TechnicalPDF.com thousands of the small cells needed for 5G services in heavily trafficked downtown areas. In early 2018, AT&T acquired Fiber