• Reuters, Friday, March 21, 2008 11 AM

Google didn't acquire any spectrum in the latest FCC auction--Verizon and AT&T went home the big winners--but analysts say the "loss" could turn into a victory because it still stands to get access to mobile networks without having to spend tens of billions of dollars building one. Indeed, the Wall Street analysts claim that Google has succeeded in its strategy of "bidding to lose." Verizon Communications won the C-block spectrum that Google bid on, but under the auction rules, the telecom giant will be forced to allow devices and applications from other companies run on the new network.

"Google was never in this game to actually build out a telecom network. Their key goal was to open up closed networks," said Cowen & Co analyst Jim Friedland. "By creating a system that is completely open, Google may prevent carriers from using their monopoly position to drive users in a particular way to their services."

As a result, consumers soon should begin enjoying "new, Internet-like freedom to get the most out of their mobile phones and other wireless devices," said Google attorneys Richard Whitt and Joseph Faber.

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