Idaho Public Utilities Commission

Case No. ALL-T-10-01, Order No. 32578

June 26, 2012

Contact: Gene Fadness (208) 334-0339, 890-2712

Allied Wireless seeks conditional ETC status for FCC auction

Allied Wireless Communications Corporation is seeking state approval to compete for federal dollars to accelerate deployment of cellular and broadband services in unserved areas of Idaho.

The Idaho Public Utilities Commission granted ETC (eligible telecommunications carrier) status to Allied Wireless in March 2011, which qualified the wireless provider to receive federal Universal Service Fund support to help telephone consumers in rural areas where it costs more to provide a telephone network. In this application, Allied requests conditional ETC status in areas not receiving broadband service.

The conditional ETC designation would allow T-Mobile to compete in a Federal Communications Commission auction for one-time federal support. Last November, the FCC created the Mobility Fund – part of the Connect America Fund – in an effort to comprehensively reform the universal service system. The Mobility Fund will provide up to $300 million through an FCC auction on Sept. 27 to accelerate deployment of next generation 3G or better cellular and broadband networks in unserved areas of the country. As a prerequisite for bidding, Allied must have conditional ETC designation in all the census blocks for which it will submit a bid.

Allied is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Atlantic Tele-Network, Inc., a publicly-traded corporation headquartered in Beverly, Mass.

The commission is taking comments on Allied’s application through July 5. Comments are accepted via e-mail by accessing the commission’s homepage at www.puc.idaho.gov and clicking on "Comments & Questions About a Case." Fill in the case number (ALL-T-10-01) and enter your comments. Comments can also be mailed to P.O. Box 83720, Boise, ID 83720-0074 or faxed to (208) 334-3762.

A full text of the commission’s order, along with other documents related to this case, is available on the commission’s Web site. Click on “File Room” and then on “Telecommunications Cases” and scroll down to the above case number.

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