FCC to Appeal NextWave Case

Federal regulators appealed their bitter airwave dispute with NextWave Telecom Inc. to the U.S. Supreme Court. The move came as officials from the Federal Communications Commission and other agencies continued talks with NextWave aimed at resolving the company’s claim to wireless phone licenses that the FCC wants to transfer to other carriers.

The FCC was required to file an appeal Friday if it wanted the high court to hear the case, which stems from a 1996 FCC sale of wireless phone licenses. Hawthorne, N.Y.-based NextWave bid $4.7 billion for 63 wireless licenses during the auction. But the company made only a down payment and later filed for bankruptcy protection. FCC officials immediately reclaimed NextWave’s licenses and resold them to other carriers. The company successfully sued the FCC in federal court to get back the wireless licenses. The two sides have been in settlement talks since the summer.

NextWave shares rose 40cents to $11.60 in over-the-counter trading.