Comments on: Obama proposes new wireless-spectrum fee

The president's budget proposes raising an additional $4.8 billion over the next decade through additional wireless-spectrum fees paid by wireless operators.

[hortonheat]

If passed, my next question would be how would the carriers pass that cost down to the users?

[zizzybaloobah]

Carriers? Absorb the cost and not pass it on their customers? That's the funniest thing I've read all day! =D

[demecles]

I agree with hortonheat, my taxes and fees are already, well stupid. My family plan line for my wife is 9.99, with fees it is 19.99 making it over 100% surcharge with fees and taxes

[zizzybaloobah]

"Faced with a whopping $1.7 trillion deficit" - yes, that Congress had no qualms escalating, and now we the people will be taxed and fee'd to death. Not the kind of change I wanted at all...

[stanolshefski]

Thanks for the balanced reporting Ms. Reardon.

Obama is not "Faced with a whopping $1.7 trillion deficit." Obama created a whopping $1.7 trillion deficit.

We don't need anymore apologists for why Obama is hiking taxes.

@zizzybaloobah This is not the kind of change I believe in, but it's the kind of change I expected ...

[pentest]

And the $5 trillion of Bush not counting the two wars he started but never put on budget?

[xcal78]

I bet it's more then a $5 trillion war when it's over that Bush started by the looks of things.

[gerrrg]

There are 260 million wireless customers in the US.

At $50 million, that's $0.20 per customer, average, per month, or $2.40 / month, or one grande latte a year.

Of course, the cost might just be absorbed by wireless companies.

[tauvix]

Of course, you've failed to account to two things:

1) That it's $50 million per carrier, per spectrum licensed, and that figure increases to $200 million next year.

and

2) Not everyone uses the same carrier.

So, even if we're just looking at the big 4, AT&T and Verizon customers are going to have less of a per-user cost increase then T-Mobile or Sprint. In the end, this kind of fee is going to make it harder for new companies to enter into the market, and it's going to squeeze the smaller carriers right out of the industry until we're left with just two competitors.

[rmva]

"$550 million per user per year" - wow, that's several hundred gazillion per year.

[tauvix]

User in this case is defined as the company who has licensed the spectrum. Not users of the individual carriers.

[robmx]

There are a lot of spectrum holders. Some own just one small license in a rural area and don't even have a business plan that will allow them to make a profit now even if they could afford to build it out. They are looking to the stimulus package to maybe finance the build-out and now they will have to pay for the stimulus with yearly fees of how much? The article does not make any sense.

[Vegaman_Dan]

Well, Obama DID promise that that our taxes would not go up one slim dime. He didn't mention that he'd just tax the companies that provide the services we use daily, with all those fees passed on down to the same customers anyways.

See? It's not a tax- it's just ... a small service fee from your cell phone provider. Blame them, not the government, really. Yeah, thats' it. Uh huh.

Pardon me while I bend over for what I see is coming down the line in the absence of taxes to pay for the huge budget spending.

[pentest]

You do realize that the people own the airwaves?

[pentest]

You are a MS defender, why protest about being bent over now?

[w_bee]

I'll be happy to pay a bit extra for cell phone service to help out on the deficit.
However, I don't see how a drop here and there can offset a $1.7 trillion deficit.

[xcal78]

So your solution is to do nothing and let the deficit continue to increase rather then trying to decrease it?

[mobilebroadband]

Deviating away from the original subject a little, why are you happy to pay for deficit caused by ridiculous immoral activities such as pumping billions (if not trillions) into an illegal war?

What about all of these companies that have been bailed out by tax payer's money, yet big fat cat bosses are still rolling around laughing in our faces with their big fat bonuses? Okay, so Obama has put a cap on that in the US, but here in the UK the greedy little men are free to walk away with whatever they want. It's outrageous!

http://mobile-broadband-onthemove.co.uk

[Daniel-from-Lebanon]

It is very strange to see that while other countries like the UK are looking at making more spectrum available to operators and not necessarily through auctions to develop further mobile broadband and broadband as a universal service and going even against the direction of OFCOM UK ( the regulator), the USA and FCC are looking at increasing further spectrum fees... I guess it is about measuring the economic value of wireless services and seeing a return on developing the different sectors that use spectrum to delive their services...

In my opinion, any increase should be re-invested in developing rural services and targeted ICT initiatives... similar to investing in bridges and highways..

[xcal78]

"In my opinion, any increase should be re-invested in developing rural services and targeted ICT initiatives... similar to investing in bridges and highways."

That's already being handled with current legislation there's absolutely no reason to do anymore about it with this money.

[h4x0r1ng]

Hidden taxes are evil (especially coming from the man who said our taxes wouldn't be increased). Skim a little here, skim a little there, and the subjects won't know any better.

[kknudson]

He is NOT volalting his promise to not raise taxes.

This is a FEE, aka political double talk.

Yea, our cell plan is 79.99, yet I have to cut a check for 110+ ????

[GlennAllen]

You had to know that all of the tax/fee/surcharge revenue being lost due to dwindling landline subs would be replaced by increasing wireless subs at some point. Govt will always find a way to pay for its waste... and it will always involve taking money from "the public", directly or indirectly. The more things "change"...

[ferretboy88]

I already pay too many taxes for Democrats on welfare. Every single time someone on welfare gets a tummy ache and goes to the hospital it costs thousands. My girlfriends kids are on welfare and they have not worked a day ever. Free money for all. Just keep on raising all the taxes/

[yak2718]

Why do people insist on confusing fees with taxes? The wireless spectrum is a LIMITED resource that belongs to the people of the US. Our way of charging private companies for its use is through the government. What's hard to understand about that? When the companies pay the government, they're paying us. It's the government's job to charge the fair market price for each public good. Now, if you don't like what the government does with your money that's a different story. Why should certain individuals be able to take for free that which belongs to all?

Now of course they did already pay the fees at the auction, so I don't know if this particular fee is all that fair, maybe it depends on the details...