So Google has thrown $4.6 Billion at the 700Mhz spectrum and a lot of people have come up with some theories about what Google is going to do with it. I have read that a lot of people think that Google is going to purchase the spectrum and build a data network throughout the US. I’ll tell you why that isn’t true.
Google isn’t in the telecom business and they are not an ISP. I don’t think that Google wants to deal with that. Google is an advertisement company and all too often people forget that. So Google is throwing money at this to convince the FCC to force whoever gains control of that spectrum to leave it open. It goes back to that whole net neutrality issue, Google is against tiered internet and doesn’t want it to happen, so they are doing all they can to keep things moving free on the internet. Already cellular networks are heavily regulated by their providers and Google doesn’t want this to happen again on the 700Mhz spectrum.
I think that even if Google bids on it it will just be a tactic to convince others bidding to make it how they want it.
Remember that buying this spectrum doesn’t automatically mean that you can use it, there are not only towers that you have to build to be able to use it but you also have to convince consumers that they should buy the devices that would work on this network, that means this spectrum would not make a profit for Google for 5-10 years, of course Google has the money to make it that long but I don’t think that it is a business that they want to get into.
Of course I want Google to buy the spectrum and create a cheap data network using it but it just isn’t going to happen, like I said earlier Google is an internet company not a telecom.
TechCrunch is reporting that Google will be acquiring FeedBurner for $100 Million. Most of the money will be payed upfront.