July 7, 1994

                FCC RECEIVES 67 BIDDER APPLICATIONS FOR 
                    NATIONWIDE NARROWBAND PCS AUCTION

     The FCC will hold its initial auctions for licenses in the
nationwide Narrowband Personal Communications Service (PCS)
beginning on July 25, 1994 (with registration on July 24) at the
Omni Shoreham Hotel in Washington, D.C.  This will mark the first
time the FCC will use auction procedures to license PCS spectrum. 
The ten available nationwide narrowband PCS licenses available
will be auctioned in July.

     67 potential bidders have filed initial applications
(FCC Form 175) to compete in the July narrowband PCS auction. 
Tradewinds International, Inc. (the FCC's contractor for this
auction) has informed the FCC that 44 of the applicants (or
approximately 66 percent) have certified themselves as women or
minority-owned businesses.  Specifically, 29 of the narrowband
PCS applicants certified that they are minority-owned businesses
and 21 applicants claimed women-owned business status.    
           
     "This July the FCC will mark its 60th birthday with the
first ever-airwave auctions," said FCC Chairman Reed Hundt.  "Our
gift to the country and to the consumers of America will be a
new, competitive market for wireless communications services. 
Our gift to American businesses will be the opportunity to
compete in this new market.  Women and minority-owned businesses
have responded enthusiastically to this chance to get in on the
ground floor of a new development in telecommunications. That
reflects both our outreach to these groups and the plentiful
opportunities for new entrants in narrowband PCS."

     The FCC will continue its outreach efforts to ensure that
potential new entrants are kept informed of future auctions and
informational seminars.
     
     The Narrowband PCS service includes opportunities for
advanced voice paging, two-way acknowledgment paging, data
messaging and both one-way and two-way messaging and facsimile.

     Ultimately, the FCC will issue a total of approximately
3,500 narrowband PCS licenses.



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     Those interested in receiving more information about the FCC
PCS auction may call (202) 637-FCC(3221) or fax a request to
(202) 637-FCC2(3222).

     Press contact: Audrey Spivack or Susan Lewis Sallet at (202)
418-0500.

     For more information on auctions in general, call the FCC's
Auctions hotline at (202) 418-1400; hearing impaired customers
can contact the hotline via Text Telephone at (202) 632-6999.  


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