NEW YORK (S&P Global Ratings) Jan. 7, 2021--The demand for spectrum in the Federal Communication Commission's (FCC) C-Band auction has already blown past our previous high-end estimate to reach $79 billion of gross FCC payments (about $93 billion when including relocation and clearing payments to the satellite operators). Our original forecast assumed total proceeds of anywhere from $21.5 billion to $39.0 billion based on a valuation of $0.25 to $0.45 per megahertz (MHz) POP. However, demand has been exceptionally strong given that the C-Band is the largest swath of contiguous mid-band spectrum to come to market. We view this mid-band spectrum as crucial for 5G wireless network deployments because it offers good throughput characteristics. In addition, we expect advances in
