Sprint asks US FCC for delay in vacating spectrum

By Peter Kaplan

WASHINGTON, June 18 (Reuters) - Sprint Nextel Corp (S.N) said on Wednesday it was asking U.S. regulators to extend the deadline for it to stop using a key piece of airwaves close to the networks of public-safety agencies.

A spokesman for Sprint said the company filed a request with the Federal Communications Commission asking the agency to push back a June 26 deadline for Sprint to vacate some of the 800 megahertz spectrum that it currently uses.

Sprint is required to vacate the spectrum as part of a larger FCC plan to swap spectrum with public-safety agencies in the 800 megahertz band, a move aimed at minimizing interference between wireless service and public-safety users.

Sprint's request, filed late on Tuesday, came shortly after the FCC granted requests from many public-safety agencies to delay relinquishing their spectrum under the swap until July 1, 2009.

The FCC is expected to rule soon whether to grant a similar request from Sprint that would delay relinquishing its end of the spectrum under the swap.

Sprint's latest request for a delay is separate and focuses on a third piece of spectrum, between the two ends of the swap, that serves as a buffer zone to prevent interference.

That piece is important because it would allow Sprint to minimize disruption during the transition as the spectrum is being reconfigured.

Sprint's request asks that it be allowed to give up the spectrum on a phased schedule, as public-safety agencies in each region of the United States get closer to vacating theirs.

Last month, a federal appeals court ordered Sprint to adhere to the June 26 schedule after concluding that the deadline was reasonable. (Editing by Gary Hill)